Resting place of Chastain Haskins Trabue 1796-1860 & Elizabeth Trabue 1799-1849
The Kentucky Trust for Historic Preservation has recently undertaken a project with the support of descendants of the Trabue family of Kentucky to reconstruct the c1850 Trabue family vault.
Located in the Frankfort Cemetery, the cemetery was established by decree of the Kentucky State Legislature in 1844, opening to the public in 1845. The first interment was Daniel and Rebecca Boone. Primarily composed of family lots, the cemetery is claimed to be the second incorporated cemetery in America and was designed as a Garden or Rural Style cemetery after Mount Auburn. Scottish-born landscape architect Robert Carmichael was hired to become the first sexton of the cemetery and his designs created the landscape we now enjoy. Envisioned first most as a cemetery, Carmichael took care to also create a public park and arboretum gathering native every native Kentucky variety of tree and incorporating them into the design. A single image, a lithograph c1850 depicts what Carmichael designed and developed, with rows of trees defining groupings of family plots in clusters divided by winding ways and landscape features such as a pond and state mount.
An original feature of the cemetery design was a row of vaults encircling a reflecting pond. Though part of the original design, only one vault was ever constructed for the Trabue family just below Daniel Boone`s grave. Built in 1850 by Chastin Trabue for his wife Elizabeth upon her passing in 1849.
Many of the early grave markers and monuments in the Frankfort Cemetery were commissions to R.E. Launitz of New York. Though established in 1786, Frankfort was named the capital and retained a wealthy resident population throughout it’s history. The State of Kentucky commissioned Launitz to design and install the Kentucky War Memorial in 1848 for a cost of $15,000. The 65′ tall marble monument is topped by a statue of Victory and was unveiled in 1850.
Chastin Trabue commissioned his family vault of Launitz, though little communications have been discovered about the transaction. This vault was constructed in 1850, an iron gate at the entry to the family plot still bears the date. The vault and surrounding plot is one of the largest family plots in the cemetery where at rest are Elizabeth Trabue Trabue, and her sister Martha Trabue King, both daughters of Revolutionary War veteran James Trabue an early settler of Kentucky. However local lore and historic precedent elsewhere in the cemetery suggest much of what is known about the monument. It`s believed that sometime in the 1960/70’s the vaults marble face collapsed following years of freeze thaw cycles moving the top heavy design. Thankfully, only one portion of the facade broke, and the entirety of the façade laid unaltered until the current.
Recently, investigations into the construction of the vault with Mr. Jon Appell, and descendants of the Trabue Family have unearthed some theories and facts about the vault. Robert Eberhard Launitz is credited as designing the vault which has been confirmed though other cemetery documents. It is believed that the primary barrel vault structure was constructed of locally fired bricks with natural cement and covered with sheets of lead cladding. The confirmation of the presence of natural cement was discovered through investigations by Mr. Appell whereby it has been discovered that this natural cement was being mined, produced and sold in the era from Louisville, KY about 50 miles from Frankfort. Mr. Appell also confirmed the presence of the lead cladding. The inside of the vault is comprised of the parged brick built atop a limestone foundation with a full barrel arch, with a brick floor supporting four statuary marble sarcophagus, one resting on a marble table. The inside of the vault measures approximately 8′ wide by 10′ deep at it’s largest.
The face of the vault was marble, that collapsed forward and still lies as it fell. The surface of the marble structure is decorated with laurel wreaths and extinguished torches, whose carving is credited to Launitz’s studio. Three angels once graced the entry and top parapet of the face which are said to have been designed by Launitz but sculpted in Italy. The whole of the vault face shipped from New York City by ship to New Orleans and up the Ohio river to the Kentucky River and onto the cemetery by horse carts. Likely, many of the commissions of Launitz arrived in Frankfort in the same shipment in 1850, some documents from other families in the area at the time exist to support the theory that a great many commissions were made in a two-year period to support the development of the cemetery. Today the Trabue vault lies in ruin, though thankfully only one marble component was broken in the collapse. The statues were destroyed beyond repair currently, but the primary structural façade appears to have great opportunity for reconstruction. The condition of the interior of the vault for the minimal investigation completed appears to be structurally solid with little water infiltration form the earthen cover above the vault, and no great signs of deterioration of the interior structure.
The Kentucky Trust for Historic Preservation, preserved the James Trabue house in the early 2000s, father of Elizabeth for whose death the vault was built. Recently family members contacted the Trust and the resulting collaboration is now the restoration of this cemetery structure. Our intent is to address any structural deficiencies in the current condition of the vault’s superstructure, then reconstruct the marble facade using the original components paired with restoration of the surrounding individual monuments in the family plot and the surrounding iron and stone fence. We have great interest in the project by the family and many of the community. This year celebrates the 175 anniversary of the opening of the Frankfort cemetery in 1845, we hope this project will help launch further care for this historic landmark and the many deteriorated memorials on it’s grounds.
Kentucky Trust For Historic Preservation