Dr. Hurlbutt’s favorite epitaphs
Posted on Thursday, June 18, 2009, at 6:24 am, by Dr. Allardyce Hurlbutt.
It was a cough that carried him off.
It was a coffin they carried him off in.
— Greenwich, Massachusetts
Stranger weep, for at the age of seven
Little Willie went to Heaven.
To which has been added:
Cheer up, Stranger, who can tell?
Willie may have gone to Hell.
— Ireland
Here lies the body
of Samuel Young
Who came here and died
For the benefit of his health.
— Isle of Wight
Erected to the memory of
John Phillips
Accidentally shot
As a mark of affection by his brother
— Ulster
Once I Wasn’t.
Then I Was.
Now I ain’t Again.
— Lee County, Mississippi
Source: Philip Reder, comp., Epitaphs (London, 1969).
