My curiousity led me in two directions. The first, and most familiar, was a remembrance of stories and photos of my great-grand dad, William Edward Burgan. He was the youngest surviving child of the Irish Matriarch, and made a living as a stone cutter. I have a few pictures of him, including the one above. He is pictured here, carting a grave marker to its final resting place. My grandmom told me that he was employed by Hilgartner and Sons, a long established marble cutting firm. My trip to the Enoch Pratt Free Library, Maryland Room was a fruitful one. I found information on Hilgartner in their vertical file collection. They specialized in grave monuments, and used doorstops, complete with the potential customer's initials, as a sort of "calling card", or promotional tool. Rather than giving out calendars, or some other reminder of their services, Hilgartner promoted their business by giving away customized marble doorstops.
No comments:
Post a Comment