Sharp Graveyard
Leacock Township
The following is transcribed from William Frederic Worner, “Lightner/ Sharp Graveyard, Leacock Township,” Worner Collection, Lancaster County Historical Society, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, volume 2, number 7, pages 42-44.
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Inscriptions:
Anna Sharp. Born February 25, 1770; died February 15, 1855. Aged 84 years, 11 months and 18 days.
Barbara Sharp. Died May 23, 1808. Aged 40 years.
Elizabeth Sharp. Died April 12, 1796. Aged 35 years.
John Sharp. Died September 27, 1826. Aged 34 years, 11 months and 22 days.
Mary Sharp. Died March 25, 1776. Aged 12 years and 6 months.
Mary Sharp. Died May 23, 1799. Aged 66 years.
Moses Sharp. Died April 12, 1821. Aged 54 years, 3 months and 12 days.
Peter Sharp. Died April 29, 1795. Aged 65 years and 11 months.
Peter Sharp. Died March 11, 1823. Aged 23 years, 5 months and 2 days.
Susan, daughter of Peter Sharp. Aged 8 months.
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Description:
The Sharp graveyard,–if a tangled mass of briars and weeds may be referred to as a graveyard,–is on the farm of Mrs. Salley Esh, tenanted by her son, David Esh, in Leacock township. It is about a third of a mile northwest of the Christ Protestant Episcopal church, Leacock, and is situated in one of the finest farming sections in Lancaster county [probably Latitude: 40.043715, Longitude: -76.098787]. The graveyard, 20 by 20 feet, is, indeed, a most pathetic sight. It is in a wheat field not far removed from the farm house. It present a picture of neglect and decay in the midst of plenty, for the farm on which it is located is one of the most fertile in Pennsylvania. Of course, the farmer on whose land it is located is not interested in it, as the Sharps are not related to him. Every year he plows around the tangled mass of briars and weeds and so it has gradually grown into an unsightly and almost impenetrable thicket. On May 11, 1935, the time of our visit, there were nine head and two foot stones.
Contributed by Adam Boyd
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