Willliam Gavit
1766-1854

Bryant Number: 247
Type of Memorial: Marble headstone with sandstone base, shared with the headstone of of his wife, Sarah Babcock Gavit
Stonecarver: Unknown

Inscription:
William
Gavit
Age 88 Yrs.
9 Mo.

Commentary: William Gavit is one of the most celebrated of the 23 American Revolution veterans buried in the Old Colony Burying Ground. His story is one for the movies: As a fatherless Connecticut teenager in 1781, he signed up for military service on the privateer ship Favorite and commenced a drama-filled naval career on behalf of the Revolution. His fortunes turned with every seafaring encounter with the British. During his service on various ships he was twice captured and imprisoned on British prison ships, including the notorious HMS Jersey, anchored in New York’s East River. According to his own detailed written account, at the age of just 17 Gavit helped orchestrate a daring group escape from the island infirmary associated with the Jersey, after which he re-enlisted to serve until the end of the war.

Gavit married shortly after the war (the grave of his wife Sarah is just to the left of William’s), and was living in Granville, Massachusetts, when he became a leading participant in the movement to emigrate to Ohio. He and Sarah were members of the first party of families who made their way in 1805 along the difficult route to the new Granville. With them were their eight sons and two daughters.

Clearly a natural leader, Gavit held a number of prominent positions in the young town, including those of postmaster, township clerk, state senator, and justice of the peace. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the Methodist church in Granville. Gavit’s handsome marble headstone displays conspicuously the square and compass images that are the symbols of his membership in the Masons, whose Granville organization was Center Star Lodge Number Eleven.

Find a Grave link: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19766928/william-gavit