A couple of weeks ago, we had the pleasure of travelling to the island of Greenspond for the first time, to restore the iron cross made by Samuel Daw(e) in the early 20th century. Greenspond is a beautiful community about 4 hours from St. John’s, but it was absolutely worth the drive. It was a such a beautiful place, and we can’t wait to go back as soon as possible! We’d like to thank our client, and Linda White of the Greenspond Historical Society for showing us where to go and sharing her knowledge.
We arrived at Greenspond before noon, and met Linda on the site, to take a look at the site. The cross hadn’t been seen in over a decade, so we had to triangulate it’s possible location using the background of the several photos we had from then. We weren’t sure if we’d actually be able to find it when we started, but after an hour of 1m transects across the family plot and nearby surrounding area, prodding through the extremely thick grass with our shovels (don’t do this if you don’t know what you’re doing, you could damage markers!), Ian found metal. The metal turned out to be the base of the cross (see photo here), and we couldn’t have been more excited!
We had to use hedge cutters to remove the grass and sod that had grown over the cross, but we managed to get it out of the ground and onto the mowed path in the middle of the cemetery. From there, it was time for treatment.
The cross was made in the early 20th century, pre-1920s, to make the burial place of Samuel Daw’s children. Daw was a blacksmith in Greenspond, and his excellent craftsmanship is evident in the cross, which was still structurally sound even after all that time outside! We cleaned the flaking metal off with wire brushes, and treated the surface of the cross with a rust prohibitor (after consulting with a conservator who knows way more about metal than us).
While the cross dried, leaning against the fence, we prepared the foundation for the cross. After digging a 60~ cm deep hole, approx 30cm wide (test pit? Is it you?), we packed the base with limestone screening and tamped it down to create a level base with drainage. Once that was prepared, we held the cross in place while packing layers over fine pea gravel and limestone screening around the base of the cross, until the hole was filled up. We packed soil and sod around the top of the base, and voila, the Daw Cross stands again!
The images above show the cross after cleaning (left) and after treatment and re-setting (right). Photos by Lacy, 2021.
We feel very grateful to have been able to travel 4 hours from our home to restore this amazing local historical piece for the community, and are so glad that we could find it in the end! Being able to help preserve local history is why we do what we do.
Can we help you with a cemetery project? Send us an email: blackcatpreservation@gmail.com
Black Cat Cemetery Preservation 
Of course, as you know, I was heart warmed at your success. Seeing it stand again has meant a lot. When you return to that same cemetery as part of the overall Greenspond restoration project, will you restore all of the site, Samuel’s children’s stones (if any are there) as well?
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Hi Patrick, lovely to hear from you! If his children’s stones are there and in need of repair, then they are on the list! I’m not sure what the fundraising looks like at the moment, but Linda can fill you in on that! We are hoping to restore all the stones on Greenspond that need help, and we’re actually starting this June with the Old United Cemetery 🙂
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