Article Contributed on: 6/10/2009 3:07:59 PM
Far from the raging battlefields of World War II, the Annie Laurie Wishing Chair at Olinger Crown Hill was dedicated on August 16, 1942. The Annie Laurie Wishing Chair commemorates a soldier's sweetheart, Annie Laurie, who lived in Glencairn, Scotland and was immortalized by William Douglas in his sentimental ballad of the same name. Douglas, a soldier in the Royal Scots, was said to have been infatuated with Annie Laurie, but her family was opposed to their union.
Today, the Annie Laurie Wishing Chair monument remains peacefully situated in the southwest part of Olinger Crown Hill Mortuary, Cemetery & Arboretum.
The legend of the wishing chair stems from a tradition, where outside a church in Glencairn, a bride and groom would sit on a wishing chair for good luck following their wedding. At Crown Hill, the Annie Laurie Wishing Chair is said to have been blessed by he fairies so that "good fortune will forever smile upon the lad and lassie who sit here and, hand in hand, repeat the Ancient Scotch verse on the tablet in front."
The tablet reads:
Dressed in our best and all alone
We sit within the wishing chair
Which bodes success for everyone
Exchanging fond caresses there.
The Annie Laurie Wishing Chair is among the monuments that will be featured during Olinger Crown Hill's cemetery tour from 10 a.m. - noon, Saturday, June 20. Attendees will also hear about the Father of Colorado Baseball, the role the Tower of Memories played in mapping Denver and much more. The tour is free to the community.
For more information or for walking tour brochures on the history, art and architecture, and trees of Olinger Crown Hill, visit www.crownhillfuneral.com.