AKA Stephen Ridlon Farm
Location: 43.87723 -70.83136
From its intersection with Richardson Road, drive northwest on Hiram Hill Road 220 yards to the first driveway on the right (northeast) side of the road (#299). Drive 250 feet north to the house. Walk 300 feet further north to a small clearing. Follow a blue-blazed trail 300 feet northeast through the woods to the cemetery, which is partially surrounded by granite posts.
Historical Information: This cemetery is located on property once owned by Stephen Ridlon. Stephen appears to have owned property on both sides of Hiram Hill Road and is shown living on the west side on the 1858 map. In 1866 Stephen deeded his homestead farm to his son James H. Ridlon, who is shown on the east side of Hiram Hill Road on the 1880 map. Stephen and his wife Miriam (Wales) were living with James on the 1870 and 1880 census.
After James H. Ridlon’s death in 1911, the farm went to his daughter Marcia, wife of Ivory Maddox. The description for the 44 acre farm was “excepting and reserving, however, the graveyard and graves thereon.” This area now corresponds with R09-0053 which is owned by Katherine Rhoda in 2020. The cemetery exception, as well as a right-of-way to it, is still included in the deed.
This cemetery has two distinct areas. An unenclosed area is to the south and contains at least six graves, most marked by fieldstones only and one marked with a marble tablet (Rosanna Hartford). The northern area is divided into four even squares by granite posts, each square containing space for two graves apiece. In the southwest square is a mounded grave marked by two Civil War markers for Benjamin Hawkins Ridlon. The northern two squares show what are either deep grave depressions or exhumed areas. The southeastern section was likely exhumed and is missing a granite corner post from that process.
Benjamin H. Ridlon, born 7/23/1840, was the son of Stephen and Miriam and also owned adjoining land before his early death on 11/19/1869 at age 29. He served with both Co. G, 13th ME Infantry and also Co. H., 30th ME Infantry. There are records of both headstones being contracted by D.W. Whitney in 1879, placed in the “Family” cemetery in Hiram. Benjamin died of consumption, making his will just seven days before his death and leaving all of his property to his young wife Elizabeth “Lizzie” (Durgin) Ridlon. The couple had two children, John Spring Ridlon (born 3/16/1868) and Caleb Durgin Ridlon (born 9/12/1869). Tragically, both died of consumption in 1870, first John on May 10th then Caleb on July 2nd. It is likely that they are buried in this cemetery as there is no record of their gravestones anywhere else. In September of 1970 Lizzie sold Benjamin’s property. She did eventually remarry, to Thompson R. Cotton, and had other children who survived to adulthood.
In the Village Cemetery in Hiram is a granite monument for the Ridlon/Maddox family, with individual granite stones for the following family members: Stephen Ridlon (no dates), Meriam Ridlon (no dates), James H. Ridlon (1846-1911), Joanna (Goodwin) Ridlon (wife of James, 1845-1880), Benjamin H. Ridlon (son of James and Joanna, 1876-1891), Fannie Ridlon (daughter of James and Joanna, 1866-1892), Marcia E. Maddox (daughter of James and Joanna, 1867-1947), Ivory Maddox (husband of Marcia, 1864-19__), and Charles E. Maddox (son of Ivory and Marcia, 1888-1934). It is likely that many of these people were originally buried on the Ridlon homestead and were later moved, probably by the Maddox family. Also unaccounted for are two of Stephen and Miriam’s children that died during the time they owned the farm: Moses (12/15/1834-7/5/1858) and Elizabeth (2/27/1836-8/6/1858).
This property also has ties to the Whales/Wales family. Miriam Ridlon was the daughter of John and Miriam (Day) Wales. Her sister Lois married John Peters Thompson and lived on Hiram Hill Road by 1870. Their graves have not been located. Their daughter Rosanna married John C. Hartford in 1862 and is buried in this cemetery (1842-11/2/1874).
Previous historians have said that Freeman Thompson of Co. E, 9th ME Infantry, was buried here. He died in battle on 7/13/1864. A family monument including a headstone for Freeman is located in Riverside Cemetery in Cornish. Freeman’s parents, Jacob and Olive (Chick) Thompson, mostly lived near the Cornish/Hiram line and did not own property near this cemetery. However, a J. Thompson appears near the corner of Hiram Hill and Richardson Roads on the 1858 map and a deed from Joseph Rankins to Joshua Ridlon for that property includes a reservation that John Thompson keep the crops currently growing there. It’s possible that the Thompsons were renting the land at that time.
Condition (11/1/2020): This cemetery is in the woods and has a couple trees fallen inside of it. The military headstones for Benjamin H. Ridlon are standing, but the marble headstone for Rosanna Hartford is lying on the ground.