About three weeks after finishing the Oklahoma Road Trip 2019, I was ready for our family vacation. Our goal was to spend a few days in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park (SNP) then head to Washington, D.C. As a family, we enjoy exploring the national parks and Shenandoah was no different.

We flew into Charlottesville, Va. and after lunch, stopped by the University of Virginia to stretch our legs. Then we headed into the park to enjoy the views.

Skyline Drive is a 100-mile scenic road that goes through the center of the 80,000-acre park. SNP’s elevation is 550 feet at its lowest to over 4,049 feet at its highest, with over 500 miles of trails. There are waterfalls, a part of the Appalachian Trail, and endless beautiful scenery.

In 1935, the government used eminent domain to displace over 450 families to build SNP. They took their lands and, with it, their burial grounds. I was surprised to learn that the National Park Service (NPS) knows of about 100 cemeteries in the park, but there could be many other unmarked burial grounds, too.

I knew I wanted to stop at least one of these cemeteries off Skyline Drive and picked out Dean Cemetery since it was on our way.

Located close to the middle of the SNP, Dean Cemetery is a well-kept family burial ground that is maintained by the Deans and local volunteers. As a flyer posted at the cemetery explains, Dean Cemetery is not taken care of by the NPS. Volunteer efforts and funds are solely responsible for its upkeep. From what I could tell, they do a wonderful job.

The Dean Family

Of the 200 memorials listed on Find a Grave, about 118 bear the last name of Dean. The man at the center of it all is James Dean. A book by Gloria Dean, “The Dean Mountain Story”, details the family history but I didn’t have enough time to get a copy before writing this post. However, I did find a summary of the book that helped.

The Dean family’s story began in England in the mid-1750s when two brothers, John and William Deane, sailed to Pennsylvania. They went south to Orange County, Va., and settled east of the North Mountain, now known as the Blue Ridge.

Rockingham County records show that in 1816, James Dean, son of John (who dropped the “e” from his last name), married Susanne Harness. In the early 1820s, Susanne and the couple’s two young daughters died in an epidemic, leaving James and his son Jeremiah. Susanne’s grave is thought to be marked by one of the many field stones at Dean Cemetery.

In 1824, James married his second wife, Sarah Monger, and built a two-story brick house for the family in the valley beside Elk Run. The story of how James and Sarah Dean (and their children) left the valley and lived out their lives on Dean Mountain, now a part of SNP, is detailed in the book.

James and Sarah had an estimated 10 to 12 children together, which may seem like a lot today. One of them was William Franklin Dean, Sr., born in 1828. He married Frances “Fannie” Meadows, who died in 1896 at age 63. William died in 1907 at age 79. William’s obituary states that he and Fannie had 23 children! Some died in childhood, but it appears many of them lived long lives.

Double Murder

One might think living in the beauty of the Shenandoah Mountains would be an idyllic setting with few worries. But tragedy can happen anywhere. That’s what happened on the night of May 11, 1925.

Wealthy lumberman Lloyd Gruver Meadows, 34, owned a large home near the top of Dean Mountain, employing many. He was married to Serena Dean, 32, and they had six children. Working for them as a handyman was R. Stanton Dean, 20, who was Lloyd’s cousin. Only two months before, Stanton had wed Carrie Dean. But that night, he was staying over at the Meadows house in a downstairs bedroom.

While respected for his business acumen, Lloyd was sometimes whispered about for being “flighty” and having fits of temper. While the handyman slept, Lloyd was upstairs arguing with Serena and accusing her of having an affair with Stanton. Later, Lloyd would later claim that Serena confessed she had been untrue to him.

Lloyd went downstairs with his pistol, quietly opened the door, and shot Stanton twice in the head as he slept. Then he turned to the stairs and saw Serena standing at the top. Lloyd shot and killed her as well.

After locking his five younger children in a room for their safety, Lloyd took oldest child Cecil and the two walked through the night to Harrisonburg to visit Lloyd’s attorney. The lawyer wisely advised him to turn himself in to the local sheriff, which he did, and confess his crimes.

“I lost my nerve or I would never be here,” he said. “For I fully intended to kill myself.”

Lloyd went on trial for double murder in July and despite an insanity defense, narrowly missed being sent to the electric chair. He was sentenced to life in prison at the Virginia State Penitentiary in Richmond. Census records indicate that by 1930, he had been moved to Southern State Hospital and judged insane. He was still there in 1950. He died in 1970 of heart failure. I do not know where he is buried.

Serena is buried in Hensley Community Cemetery, not far from Dean Cemetery. Stanton is buried at Dean Cemetery. I don’t know if his new bride, Carrie, remarried. I personally think Lloyd was lying about Serena’s confession, but had convinced himself in his deluded mind that they were cheating together behind his back. Sadly, his delusions convinced him to commit murder.

Tragedy Strikes Again

Stanton’s family was not done with suffering, unfortunately. Six years later, tragedy would strike again. Stanton’s younger brother, George Robert Dean (who went by Robert), went north to take a job at an aircraft plant in Baltimore, Md.

Robert died on Sept. 25, 1931 when the car he was driving was struck by the passenger train known as the Congressional Limited near the Middle River. He was only 22.

Three Little Ones

It’s common for me to encounter many graves of children in rural cemeteries like Dean Cemetery. When I saw the graves for Chancel, Lonnie, and Hazel, then did the math, I knew that was likely the case.

Stanton Dean’s brother Elijah Dyche Dean (1897-1959) was married to Daisy Lee Dean Dean (that’s not a typo, by the way). They had a total of nine children. Their first son, Randal, lived well into adulthood. But Chancel, born in 1920, died of diphtheria on Nov. 22, 1922. Zelda, Delmar, and Junior came next. Lonnie, born in 1928, died on Nov. 4, 1933 at age five. His death certificate notes that no doctor was present when he died but the cause of death was thought to be “membranous croup.”

Hazel, born in 1930, died on July 6, 1937 at age 7. I was expecting another childhood illness to be the cause of death but I was taken by surprise. According to her death certificate, little Hazel suffered a fractured skull when she was “run over by father’s truck.” I can only imagine that it was some horrible freak accident.

Not Afraid of the Devil

There are quite a few graves from the last 20 years, indicating that Dean Cemetery is still quite active. I wish I had been able to meet Clinton Harris Dean. His main marker isn’t out of the ordinary, per se.

But it’s the extra plaque that goes with it that caught my eye. It reads, “Here lies Clinton, son of Claud, who wasn’t afraid of the Devil, but he was of the Lord.”

As I read Clinton’s obituary, I could see why he might have earned that inscription. Born in 1921, he served in the U.S. Army during World War II. Later, he retired after serving in the merchant marine. For a man from a small, mountain town, Clinton had saw quite a bit of the world.

God’s Handiwork

As we prepared to get back on Skyline Drive, I thought about the changes the Deans have witnessed in the decades that have passed since settling in these stunning mountains. While world wars and other major events have impacted and changed society, the stark beauty and evidence of God’s handiwork around them remains the same.

I hope you’ll join me for more adventures in Virginia.