My mother was a Bankson. It's a name that has been spelled Bankston, Bengtsson, and a few other ways. DNA testing of Mom's brother, who was along on this trip, leaves little doubt that we are descended from Anders Bengtsson but just how the thread runs that connects us remains to be sorted. He drowned in in the Delaware River in 1705. Records indicate that he, his wife, and two sons are buried in the area of the cemetery at Gloria Dei shown in the last photo. It is unknown whether the graves were never marked or if stones or other markings once existed and have somehow vanished.

Some major maintenance is underway at the church and some pieces, including organ pipes, are missing. As we entered, a group of Girl Scouts were being treated to a talk by historian Neil Ronk on which we and several others eavesdropped. I immediately got hooked on his story telling and insightful comments. He tailored some of his talk to his young audience and asked, without requiring an answer, whether they would want to change places with either Martha Washington or Abigail Adams who had occupied the pew behind where they sat. He thought it likely that either of the first two First Ladies would gladly swap with any of the Scouts because of the tremendous opportunities now available to them. I was personally most impressed with his comments on the windows. At least some of the original clear glass was replaced by stained glass in the 1860s but returned to clear in the 1960s. In both instances the clear windows, in addition to brightening the interior, showed that "The outside wasn't scary."

The last picture is of the recently (April 2017) restored grave of Benjamin Franklin. The tradition of throwing pennies ("A penny saved is a penny earned.") onto the stone has resulted in some pitting and a sign near the entrance asks people to "refrain" from throwing coins and instead deposit them (and other currency:-) in a nearby jar. Clearly not everyone complies although I think actual throwing is way down. As for me, I very gently laid my one cent donation on the ground beside the marker. I'm pretty sure it's tax deductible.