A crowd gathered in Traverse City’s Oakwood Cemetery Monday morning to pay respects to a veteran on the 112th anniversary of his death.
Two women dressed in late 1800s-era black gowns and veils mourned solemnly at the perimeter of the grave site, while men clad in Civil War uniforms stood at attention nearby.
Corporal Lyman B. Snow was born in 1825 in Vermont.
Scott Schwander, a local volunteer gravestone restorer, provided this accounting of Snow’s life that he shared during Monday’s ceremony:
Snow served in both the Mexican-American and Civil wars, enduring countless hardships through those years of service. He spent his later years in Charlevoix County and died on July 14, 1913, at age 88.
Despite his military service, Snow was buried in an unmarked grave beside his wife, Laura, in Oakwood Cemetery. Only a Grand Army of the Republic flag holder with his name suggested his resting place there.
For 111 years, no headstone marked that grave.
Appeals made to Civil War groups to honor his grave went unanswered, Schwander said, adding that he eventually ordered a military headstone from the Veterans Association.
In 2024, the stone was delivered and placed in Oakwood Cemetery.
Snow’s headstone became the 3,000th grave to be completed by Schwander, who is marking a decade of volunteer service.
The Francis Finch No. 9 Auxiliary Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, members of the U.S. Coast Guard, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion Honor Guard were present at the dedication ceremony.
Lisa Smith and Angel Sibel, members of the auxiliary, stood by in the garb of that time, their faces concealed by black veils.
“We’re in mourning,” Smith said. “We’re representing the heartache that goes along with a death ...”
A three-volley salute rang out as the members of the honor guard raised their rifles to the sky. As the smoke cleared, all attendees stood in reverence as one of the members began to play taps on a trumpet.
Eric Boals is both a retired U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer and a member of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.
Boals said the purpose of dedications such as Snow’s is to give citizens some perspective as to their patriotic duty.
“America has a duty to remember the big sacrifices,” he said. “These guys sacrificed a lot.”
Boals invited multiple speakers to join him at the podium behind Snow’s grave, which was adorned with various items that a Civil War soldier would keep in his kit.
Chaplain Lorraine Aurand delivered the divine blessing and benediction for the ceremony, while evergreen and primrose wreaths were placed at Snow’s grave, symbolizing immortality and victory.
State Sen. John Damoose of Michigan’s 37th District gave the keynote address, speaking on the importance of service, sacrifice and remembrance.
“I’ll go to any ceremony that I can,” Damoose said. “You know, it’s so important because these are lessons and people that are sadly easy to forget. They’re not in our faces every day, but we need something to remind us of the actual cost paid for us.”
Prior to his career in politics, Damoose wrote and directed a documentary titled “Arlington: In Eternal Vigil,” which aired in 2006. He said he spent two years wandering around Arlington National Cemetery during the filming, where he learned firsthand about the importance of remembrance.
“We need these things,” he said. “We’re such a divided nation right now. I don’t care where you stand politically, this is something we can all rally around.”
Onlookers listened as Walt Whitman’s poem, “As Toilsome I Wander’d Virginia’s Wood,” was read aloud and the camp musicians softly played “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” on violin and cello.
As the dedication ceremony came to a close, Boals asked attendees to remember Cpl. Snow for his sacrifice and virtues as he lay in his final resting place.
“Taps are sounded, lights are out,” he said. “The soldiers sleep.”
This story was produced in partnership with the Traverse City Record-Eagle as part of the Michigan News Group Internship Program, a collaboration between WCMU Public Media and local newspapers in central and northern Michigan. The program’s mission is to train the next generation of journalists and combat the rise of rural news deserts.
