Cleaning headstones at pioneer cemetery reveals ancestors of Leatherman tool founder

Reading many of the names, dates and epitaphs in the pioneer section of Belle Passi Cemetery was challenging until Heather Lagaso came along.

The Gervais woman has hand-cleaned nearly 200 gravestones this summer, many blackened and encrusted with biological growth, making their inscriptions illegible.

Using a soft-bristle brush, a plastic scraper, thousands of bamboo skewers and a biodegradable cleaner tested and used by the U.S. National Park Service, Lagaso has revealed history layer by layer.

Among the first gravestones she worked on were four upright markers in a large family plot at the cemetery off Highway 99E between Gervais and Woodburn. She could not make out the surname, caked with four types of lichen.

Nearly three months, three gallons of D/2 Biological Solution and 3,000 bamboo picks later, she was looking at the pristine white marble stones of the Leatherman family.

A bit of research led her to believe this was the resting place of ancestors of the founder of Leatherman Tool Group, and she received confirmation after sending an email to the Portland-based company.

A grateful Tim Leatherman responded within a few days and even sent her an engraved, signed Leatherman Wave+, one of the company’s best-selling multi-tools.

"I don't often get to connect with families unless someone has commissioned me," Lagaso, 43, said. "I was really proud of the work, but I didn't expect anything. His graciousness and response was very touching."

Restoring history in a pioneer cemetery

Lagaso has been doing stone preservation and restoration as a hobbyist and occasional professional for about 25 years. She began focusing on old gravestones when D/2 became available and has ramped up those efforts in recent years.

She appreciates the history each stone shares.

"History is everything. It's important to me," she said during a recent visit to Belle Passi, where she received permission to do the volunteer work. "The history here is remarkable."

The cemetery was established in 1852 in a town of the same name on the overland stage route between Salem and Oregon City. Belle Passi, named by a pioneer preacher after the Italian city Belpasso, predated Gervais and Woodburn.

When a stranger attending the town church died suddenly, members stepped forward and offered a site to bury him. Today, the cemetery has more than 5,800 memorials, according to the online database Find a Grave, and no one knows where the stranger lies.

He was likely buried somewhere in the southwest section of the cemetery, where the earliest markers are. The history of that section has faded over the years, with headstones overcome by lichen, algae and moss.

Every headstone has a story

Lagaso targets the oldest gravestones at Belle Passi and those at risk of further decay. Lichen can penetrate the stone and cause a slow fragmentation of the surface.

The first thing she does is inspect a marker to be sure there are no cracks or structural damage, which could make it dangerous to work on.

She had to pass on the distinctive tree stump monument erected by the Woodmen of the World in memory of Samuel E. Tolman, who died in 1897. It is broken at the base and precariously leaning forward.

But there is no shortage of headstones in need of TLC, including those for Leta E. May and Adelia Sweeney.

Leta was 3 when she died in 1896 of what Lagaso came to learn from her death certificate was putrid throat, a historical term for diphtheria. Lagaso was drawn to Leta's small, rounded stone because it was all by itself.

Adelia was 15 when she died in 1868. Cleaning her marker was difficult because it has four different fonts and was encrusted with black gypsum crystal growth caused by pollutants in the air.

"This was probably the hardest I've ever done," Lagaso said. "It was all black, every bit of it."

She learned Adelia was the niece of Sam and Elizabeth Brown, whose shared gravestone is nearby. Sam Brown was an early pioneer and is widely considered the founder of Gervais.

"I was very happy to find that out," said Lagaso, who is married and has two sons. "I'm always sad when someone is alone."

She gets attached to the people whose names she reveals, learning tidbits about their life through post-cleaning research. Subsequent visits to the cemetery are like visiting old friends, and she has conversations with them, albeit one-sided.

"Mr. Wessels is my buddy here," said Lagaso, standing next to the marker for A. Wessels, who died in 1874. "Nobody knows who he was, but he still lived this interesting life.

"Everybody has a story. Some are fascinating, and some are boring, and it doesn't matter."

Learning about the Leatherman family

The Leatherman headstones revealed one of the more fascinating stories.

The 4-by-28-foot family plot includes four large upright stones and two small, flat markers. But even after applying the cleaning solution and beginning to make out the name, it never dawned on Lagaso the family could somehow be related to the company that created the world's first pliers-based multi-tool.

Frederic Leatherman, who died in 1890, is the great-great-grandfather of Tim Leatherman, founder and chairman of the popular tool company, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in July.

"Most people don't know the name of the company is the surname of a person," Tim Leatherman told the Statesman Journal. "Most people think the company was founded 100 years ago and started in the leather-making business."

It was incorporated in 1983 and has sold more than 70 million tools worldwide, tools used for everything from DIY projects at home to hunting, fishing and wilderness survival.

Leatherman said he knew he had ancestors buried at Belle Passi but had never visited the cemetery. He was grateful to hear from Lagaso but somewhat ashamed the headstones had fallen into such disrepair.

Lagaso never intended that to be his reaction. She was simply proud of the work and wanted descendants to know someone cared about Frederic Leatherman and his family.

Frederic and his wife, Barbara, were early pioneers. They came to Oregon by wagon train in 1869 from Iowa. They had eight children, including Mary and J.R., who have markers next to theirs.

Thanks to Lagaso, the Leatherman gravestones look new.

Tim Leatherman, a fifth-generation Oregonian, said he was fascinated to learn about her restoration technique.

Dos and don'ts of the trade

Lagaso uses an arsenal of tools, including D/2, what she refers to as a miraculous solution developed by conservators who know the damage biological growth can cause.

D/2 is biodegradable and contains no bleach, salts or acids, and is safe to use around plants and wildlife.

Memorial preservation experts recommend never using bleach or other harsh cleaners that can harm headstones. Power washers and metal brushes also are on the do-not-use list.

The downside to D/2 is Lagaso said it costs about $50 a gallon and is available only online. She goes through a gallon a week, but said it is well worth the results.

After wetting a headstone and inspecting it, she uses a plastic scraper to remove larger growth on the surface, then sprays on D/2. She uses a soft-bristle brush in a circular motion to gently scrub the stone, then walks away for a few hours, or days, and moves on to the next.

Lagaso works on several headstones at a time, all in various stages of completion. Lichen is part fungus, part plant and especially difficult to remove. It can live for decades or centuries and flourish not just on the surface of a gravestone but penetrate the stone.

She rinses the D/2 off with water, although it will have soaked into the stone and continue to kill the lichen. Then she uses a toothbrush and 6-inch-long bamboo picks for the detail work.

Lagaso will apply more solution as needed. She said most of the old headstones require multiple applications. Next to D/2, the bamboo pick is her most valuable tool.

'They look brand-new'

Belle Passi sexton Greg Brentano has watched Lagaso work her magic.

"It's incredible when you see all the white headstones sticking up," Brentano said. "It's taken them back 100 years. They look brand-new. Now you see all the fine detail and all the artwork, and they're beautiful.

"I'm so impressed with her."

He said he never would have had the time nor the cemetery the money to do such a big job and make such an impact.

Lagaso said she is happy to teach anyone the tricks of the trade.

"One of my favorite parts about Heather doing this is she teaches you how to do it," said Kristie Richardson of Gervais, who has been following Lagaso's work this summer.

She also is involved with Lagaso's nonprofit, Gervais Community Progress Team, which focuses on serving local children.

Lagaso has posted an open invitation on the Gervais history Facebook page she manages and is at Belle Passi most Sundays and Mondays from about 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., through at least September.

For more information, email her at heatherlagaso@gmail.com or visit her online site.

Her goal was to clean 100 headstones at Belle Passi, and she is at 180 and counting. It is by far the most she has done at one location.

"I don't need to run into a Leatherman every time," Lagaso said. "But it's amazing how the work gets people inspired to look into their own history or go clean their own family's headstones."

Capi Lynn is the Statesman Journal’s news columnist. Send comments, questions and tips to her at clynn@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6710.

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Cleaning headstones reveals ancestors of Leatherman tool founder