'Fort Fisher Hermit' not forgotten By Amy Hotz FEB. 2, 2008
'Fort Fisher Hermit' not forgotten
By Amy Hotz
Staff Writer
amy.hotz@starnewsonline.com
The 217-year-old Newton Graveyard sits back in the woods, away from the noise of River Road. To get there, you have to park your car on the sandy shoulder of the road, duck under a gate and walk a few yards down a leaf-strewn dirt road.
The graveyard was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997 because a family of early boat captains is buried there. But one grave there doesn't seem to belong. A fitting observation since the man buried there, even in life, didn't seem to fit in with the world around him.
The granite stone reads, "Robert E. Harrill. The Fort Fisher Hermit. He made people think. Feb. 2, 1893 - June 4, 1976."
Harrill was born 115 years ago today. In his day, the hermit lived in an old bunker at Fort Fisher and subsisted off the land and ocean. As a child, he'd always sought solace in nature. As an adult - suffering through a bad marriage and the suicide of his eldest son - he shunned the material world and kept his life simple. People found this fascinating. They traveled from all over the world and traded money or food in exchange for his philosophies.
Now, visitors carry odd little things down that dirt road and place them on the old man's grave. It's outlined in large whelk shells. Cockles, oyster shells and a piece of what looks like petrified wood are sprinkled within its 5-foot confine. A small turtle shell is turned up beside a well-seasoned cast iron frying pan. A metal bowl painted in blue enamel, like the one kids take on camping trips, also has its place on the grave. Someone, not so long ago it seems, carefully placed a small bunch of plastic flowers tied with a bit of straw by the headstone.
It's a simple monument to a simple man. And it makes you think.
Amy Hotz; 343-2099
amy.hotz@starnewsonline.com
By Amy Hotz
Staff Writer
amy.hotz@starnewsonline.com
The 217-year-old Newton Graveyard sits back in the woods, away from the noise of River Road. To get there, you have to park your car on the sandy shoulder of the road, duck under a gate and walk a few yards down a leaf-strewn dirt road.
The graveyard was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997 because a family of early boat captains is buried there. But one grave there doesn't seem to belong. A fitting observation since the man buried there, even in life, didn't seem to fit in with the world around him.
The granite stone reads, "Robert E. Harrill. The Fort Fisher Hermit. He made people think. Feb. 2, 1893 - June 4, 1976."
Harrill was born 115 years ago today. In his day, the hermit lived in an old bunker at Fort Fisher and subsisted off the land and ocean. As a child, he'd always sought solace in nature. As an adult - suffering through a bad marriage and the suicide of his eldest son - he shunned the material world and kept his life simple. People found this fascinating. They traveled from all over the world and traded money or food in exchange for his philosophies.
Now, visitors carry odd little things down that dirt road and place them on the old man's grave. It's outlined in large whelk shells. Cockles, oyster shells and a piece of what looks like petrified wood are sprinkled within its 5-foot confine. A small turtle shell is turned up beside a well-seasoned cast iron frying pan. A metal bowl painted in blue enamel, like the one kids take on camping trips, also has its place on the grave. Someone, not so long ago it seems, carefully placed a small bunch of plastic flowers tied with a bit of straw by the headstone.
It's a simple monument to a simple man. And it makes you think.
Amy Hotz; 343-2099
amy.hotz@starnewsonline.com
posted by robhill at 5:36 PM
