Eastman Baptist Church and Cemetery - Eastman, OK - Churchyard Cemeteries on Waymarking.com

While the church's mailing address is "Overbook", that's over twelve miles from here, and oddly, Burneyville's post office is closer, about seven miles away. Regardless, this is definitely rural Love County, OK, with mostly ranch land and scattered residences, and the most significantly populated communities are Marietta, Ryan, and Wilson.

They are part of the Enon Baptist Association, and their page on that site indicates that their services are on Sunday at 11 AM and 6 PM, and Wednesday at 7 PM. This is at odds with the sign out front, which indicates 11 AM only, so check with them on their Facebook page (see Website, below) if there are questions.

There's not much to be found online about Eastman itself -- even the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture is silent -- but there was a school here at one point, given a reference to the old Meadowbrook School by the Oklahoma Historical Society. That school wasn't too far from here -- it now belongs to the ages -- but given that it was created from multiple school districts (including Eastman) and served from 1930 to 1958, it's not difficult to speculate that Eastman's day had come and gone by 1930. There is further evidence of that just a bit down the road, south of the cemetery. There is a historical marker that notes the site of the Eastman Post Office, active from 1891 to 1916, indicating that it was named for a prominent Chickasaw, Charles E. Eastman. The community is more of a rural community today than it is a ghost town.

The cemetery dates to at least the 1880s, with well over two hundred burials, and it is still active. An interesting but sad headstone here is the one that marks the final resting places of Marion Montgomery Tucker, his wife, Louisa, and three of their children. They and three of their children were murdered in 1895, probably by an estranged son-in-law, and while there is no mention on the headstone as to their fate, the deaths on the same date attract scrutiny from those who are paying attention. The top of the headstone has an inscription for Mr. Tucker:

M.M. Tucker

Born
Oct. 27, 1844
Died
Feb. 6, 1895.

A mourning dove flies over the Gates of Heaven on the front of the headstone, and Mrs. Tucker is listed:

L. Tucker

Died
Feb. 6, 1895
Aged 42 Yrs.

On the plinth is an epitaph, "They are remembered by their children."

Name of church or churchyard: Eastman Baptist Church and Cemetery Approximate Size: Large (100+)

Visit Instructions:
VISIT LOGS

1. The waymark coordinates must be personally visited.
2. Give the date and a description of your visit
3. Post at least one photo taken at the time of your visit

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.