Mrs. Lydia Ann Pero, wife of John Pero, died on August 7, 1855, at the age of 25. She is buried in Block 10 of Oakland Cemetery.Lydia's tombstone features a daguerreotype of the young husband and wife.
The following inscription is found on Lydia's tombstone:Benevolent she lived; Virtuous she died,
Now lies at rest, her infants by her side.
Yet of dear wife, thy spirit lingers near,
Will listen to thy husband's lonely tread?
And watch the silent, lonely pensive tear,
Which drop to consecrate thy dreamless bed?
Her life was like the dew drop,
Which glistens on the rose
Her spirit like the timid dove
In heaven has found repose.
Records found in the book CEMETERIES OF ERIE COUNTY, compiled by Marjorie Loomis Cherry in 1935, also lists the names of infants born to John and Lydia Pero. They are buried next to their mother. The children were named Aghea or Aghsa Pero, a baby girl who died on July 21, 1849; and Martin Pero, who died on April 14, 1852.
These cemetery records show that one young family had a great deal of sorrow and heartache in a short amount of time. Census records show a John Pero who moved to Fremont, Ohio, and lived a long life. He remarried and had more children. To date we do not have enough information to be sure that this is the same individual who buried his wife and babies at Oakland Cemetery in the middle of the nineteenth century in Erie County, Ohio.
The monument maker's mark at the bottom of the stone of Lydia Pero may read "Myers, Uhl & Co.", Cleveland.
