Sweet Auburn: The Magazine of the Friends of Mount Auburn Inspiring All Who Visit | Page 11

Stories Behind the Stones:
Memorable Encounters
By Roberto Mighty, Artist-in-Residence 2014 –2017

As Mount Auburn’s first Artist-in-Residence,
I am permitted to roam the grounds at all hours of the day
and night. Let’s get this out of the way right now: none of
my experiences so far would qualify as undeniably supernatural.
I’ve found myself in a staring contest with a coyote; gobbled
at by territorial tom turkeys, and under the inscrutable but
not unkind scrutiny of a Great Horned Owl. Speaking of
avians, there was that stare-down with a Red-Tailed Hawk
on the shore of Willow Pond. Its cold gaze made me feel,
for the first time in my life, like someone else’s dinner.Yikes.
But my most memorable face-to-face encounters are with
bipedal visitors who notice the elaborate motion camera rigs
I sometimes use to get special shots of monuments and
landscapes.These meetings often involve the person stopping,
staring, maintaining a respectful distance, and then, throwing
caution to the winds, marching right up and asking: “So…
whatcha doin’?” Although it’s tempting to come back with
something like, “trying to find my mobile phone,” I generally
reply with a brief, straight explanation of my role here.
This is when the fun begins. Because, just under the
surface of many Mount Auburn visitors, there is a generous,
knowledgeable fan who wants to share their favorite monument, flower, tree, story, or vista. I welcome these impromptu
teaching sessions and enjoy learning from people, some of
whom have been strolling or hiking around the cemetery
for as long as I’ve been alive!
One day I was approached by a woman who passionately
assured me that a certain young man from Wayland was
buried somewhere at Mount Auburn. She knew his name
and the year of his interment: 1859. Her excitement led me
to investigate further. Meg Winslow, Curator of Historical
Collections, helped with an online and a manual records
search (there are over 98,000 people interred here). That
search turned up the lot number on Harvard Hill, a contemporary newsletter article, and other information. The
visitor later returned with a distant relative of the deceased.
To our wonderment, they brought with them an array of
original historical documents, some yellowed and crumbling,
from as far back as the eighteenth century.
This inspired me to continue researching and to make
an artistic multimedia piece about the life and times of
Edward Thomas Damon, a medical student at what would
come to be called Harvard Medical School. He died of
smallpox on November 30, 1859, at age 24. It seems he
knowingly exposed himself to the dread disease while
tending patients at a sanatorium in Boston Harbor. The
inspiring story of his sacrifice made me think of the doctors,
nurses, and medical workers from Boston, Africa, and all

Photo of new media artist Roberto Mighty by KGH, promotional image for
earth.sky a multi-media installation about Mount Auburn combining film, voice
and music, monument erected to the memory of Edward Thomas Damon by his
friends and fellow Harvard Medical Student classmates.

over the world who risk their lives to help victims of the
modern-day scourge of Ebola.
If you see me, camera in hand, working intently along
the paths, please do not hesitate to interrupt whatever I’m
doing and tell me about your favorite place at Mount
Auburn. Thanks in advance for your help.
Learn more about Edward Damon in the earth.sky
exhibit online.
Summer 2015 | 9