You Don't Know Richard

As I was working on my latest blog, I heard the news that the Ben Franklin Post Office may be shut down. I was sad to hear that because I know it serves the many tourists who visit our city each day. I always use it because it is the closest post office to the church plus all mail sent from there gets hand stamped with B Free Franklin postmark. I am hoping that perhaps someone will step in and save it. 

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It occurred to me that we have the first two Postmaster Generals buried at the Christ Church Burial Ground. In fact, their graves are right next to each other. Ben Franklin was the first Postmaster General and served for 15 months from 1775 until his son- in- law Richard Bache took over in 1776 and served until 1781. 

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July 29, 2011 will be the 200th anniversary of the death of Richard Bache. One of the most frequently asked questions I get at the burial ground each day is “Who are Richard and Sarah Bache?” Because of the close proximity of the Bache grave to that of Ben and Deborah Franklin, it makes folks wonder who they are. 

Very few people are aware that Ben had a daughter named Sarah and that she married Richard Bache. I always tell people about Sarah and her involvement in the Ladies’ Association, one of the leading fundraising organizations of the Revolutionary War. Richard Bache, an immigrant merchant from England, moved to Philadelphia, met Sarah, fell in love and they were married at Christ Church on October 29th 1767. In addition to his service as Postmaster General, he served on the Board of War. 

Working here at the graveyard, it is safe to say that every day is someone’s birthday and death date. It is impossible for me to know about and acknowledge most of the dates for the over 4000 souls buried here, but I do the best I can. When I know about or am reminded of one of these anniversaries, I privately remember them with flowers or a small prayer or even a shout of Happy Birthday at their faded marble stone. 

So I just wanted to give a shout out to Richard Bache and remind people that he was much more than a name they can’t pronounce or even heard of.

- Hop

The image, _MG_5113-Benjamin Franklin’s Grave, was originally uploaded at Flickr by Elwyn who owns its copyright and can be contacted at the previous link. The image is posted here with that owner’s permission bybarneykin, administrator of “The Revolution ed” pool.(12)

The image Ben Franklin Post office, was orginally uploaded by blogger http://thekchorns.com/?s=ben+franklin&search=Search, who owns its copyright and can be contacted at the previous link.