This is the tombstone of my great grandparents, Theodore P. Smith 1877-1914 (aka Theodoro Pacheco) and Mary P. Smith 1878-1938 (aka Maria de Braga). They were buried at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Oakland, CA. When I visited the grave site for the first time, the fence was bent over and the ivy was seriously in danger of taking over the tombstone. We fixed it up as best we could.
Unbeknownst to me at the time I visited, the tombstone did not reveal all the secrets of this burial plot. When I went back to check the records in the office, I realized two others were buried in the same plot. Theodoro and Maria’s grandson (by daughter Maria), Theodore Souza, and their nephew William P. Algrava (by Theodoro’s brother, Manoel) were also buried there. Both died as babies.
It baffles me a little because my great grandparents had very little money. Most of what they had was used to smuggle Theodoro from Hawaii to California to avoid deportation to Molokai (he had leprosy). Theodoro was only able to work for a couple of years after they arrived in 1907, so I don’t think they were able to put much money away. They never bought a house on E. 25th Street, but always rented.
Although Maria is listed as paying for the burial of her husband, Theodoro, I seriously doubt it was their money. My theory is that others in the family gave her the money and that’s why a grandson and a nephew are also buried here.
