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by Mary B. Walsko, Highland, Indiana

Source: The Avonlea Traditions Chronicle, Issue No. 26, Winter 1998/9.

In July 1998, I was quite excited to be visiting Prince Edward Island for the second time since 1994. During my 1994 trip, I searched for Herman Leard's gravesite after reading about it in Issue No. 9 of The Avonlea Traditions Chronicle.

Herman Leard was one of the sons at the home in Lower Bedeque where L. M. Montgomery stayed, when she was teaching at the Lower Bedeque school during the 1897 - 1898 school year. L. M. Montgomery developed a crush on Herman, and he was fond of her as well. However, L. M. Montgomery came to the realization that Herman would not be a good choice in a husband for her, so at the end of the school term, her relationship with him came to an end. She always had strong feelings for him, though, and it came as a terrible shock when she heard of his death from influenza on June 30, 1899, at the age of twenty-nine.

I visited the Lower Bedeque school house where L. M. Montgomery had once taught, then I walked through the Bedeque Cemetery but I wasn't able to locate the grave. This time, I knew I couldn't leave the Island without finding it. It became a passion of mine, and I'm sure I drove my family crazy in the process!

I again visited the Lower Bedeque school, and asked the young girl working there if she knew where I could find Herman Leard's grave. She suggested I talk to her mother, who was at a nearby church. We drove to the church, and I eagerly asked the first person I saw if she happened to know where Herman was buried. The lady I spoke to gave me directions to the Central Bedeque United Baptist Church Cemetery. It turned out that she was a relative of Herman Leard's!

My trip to Prince Edward Island finally felt complete after I located Herman's grave and took a photo of it.

I greatly appreciated the friendliness of Herman's relative, and the helpfulness of the young girl at the Lower Bedeque School. I hope this information will help others who would like to visit his gravesite.

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