03/17/2026
A tragic and surprising love story was recently uncovered by local Boy Scouts in historic Sardis Cemetery.
Just as Boy Scout Troop 81 was completing their service project to clear leaves from the circa-1840s cemetery, something made two scouts stop in their tracks.
After raking straw from beneath an old pine tree, a broken headstone was just barely made visible. A large ant bed had formed above the stone, but the Boy Scouts bravely scraped it away without hesitation.
One scout ran to get water and began rinsing the stone and wiping it with his bare hands to see its inscription. But as scouts continued clearing the area, another discovery was made.
A second broken headstone was unearthed right beside it - with the two deceased identified as husband and wife. Over the years, the old pine tree had grown a big root and toppled the stones one after the other.
As the second headstone became visible, a scout had the shocking realization that the death dates on the two stones were the same: March 25, 1909.
How could a middle-aged husband and wife couple die on the same day? The Sardis Preservation Society immediately began research.
That's when a tragic love story - long-lost to history - was re-discovered. Arthur "Walter" and Pearl Etta Van Pelt died on the same day, of the same illness, just 12 hours apart.
Walter was hard at work as a prison guard when he received news that his beloved wife was very sick with typhoid pneumonia - a serious, often fatal complication of typhoid fever.
He rushed to her side, desperately trying for several terrifying days to nurse her back to health. But tragically, Walter would soon contract the same illness.
Pearl died on the morning of March 25, 1909 as Walter's condition continued to worsen. The sun had not long set on that very same day when Walter also breathed his last. They left behind a 1-year-old baby.
The next day, a double-funeral was held right here at Sardis Presbyterian Church. The matching headstones were erected as a testament to their love and loss, and serve as a reminder of the fragility of life throughout our history.
Thank you, Boy Scout Troop 81, for uncovering the forgotten memory of the Van Pelt's. And thanks especially for all your work in cleaning up historic Sardis Cemetery so that the stories of other past Romans can be re-discovered.
The Boy Scouts have now paved the way for professional restoration work to begin at Sardis Cemetery, through which headstones like those of the Van Pelts will be given new foundations, repaired, and cleaned.
Please consider following Historic Sardis Presbyterian Church & Cemetery and come along with us on this journey of restoration and discovery.
