This regal granite chair is a monument to saloon-keeper and cigar maker Patrick Dowling (1856-1896), his wife Ruth A. Page Dowling (1862-1944), and their daughter, Della (1893-1943) in Oak Ridge Cemetery, 1441 Monument Avenue in Springfield, Illinois. Chair-shaped grave markers are common in the Midwest, but this one is particularly elaborate, with draped cloth, ferns, tassels, vines, and a harp. It was carved by Springfield stonemason Edward Levanius. Oak Ridge Cemetery is the second-most visited cemetery in the United States, and its 365 acres are the final resting place for over 75,000 dead.
M.A. Kleen 