Williamson F. Betts - Fairview Cemetery - Gainesville, TX, USA - Doves of peace on Waymarking.com

The Woodmen of the World are known today as WoodmenLife, a fraternal society that provides insurance to its members. Visitors to older cemeteries can frequently spot the tree trunk monuments that they placed at the graves of their members, although not every tree trunk monument out there was placed by the Woodmen of the World: It was common in the late 19th century to use a log to note that a person had died young, and many infants have such grave markers. Eventually, those tree trunk monuments became too expensive to produce, and headstones would be marked with a Woodmen of the World emblem of some kind. Earlier ones like this one featured a dove of peace with an olive branch in its beak, flying over a fallen log where the tools of the woodmen's trade -- hatchet, mallet, and wedge -- can be seen, noting that it was "Erected by the Woodmen of the World", with the organization's motto, "Dum tacet clamat" -- "Though silent, he speaks" -- just below the tools.

While a death year cannot necessarily be the year of placement, this is certainly a very early model, notable for Mr. Betts's passing in the 19th century. The inscription reads:

Williamson F.
Betts

Born
Mar. 17, 1850,

Died
Mar. 20, 1893.

Kind of dove: Dove with olive branch Used material for the dove: Other (explanation in the long description) Address: 710 Fair Ave Gainesville, TX USA 76240

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