17] THE GRAVE OF C. A. [CORNELIUS ARNOLD] SCHIER [d. 1935], VELI CEMETERY, FORT COCHIN

Grave of C A Schier, Cemetery of St Francis CSI Church, Veli, Fort Cochin

In this post, I will write briefly about a German grave in the C. S. I. Cemetery at Veli, Fort Cochin (former British Cemetery). See Grave No. 23 [II Set] in my earlier post on Veli Cemetery here. Though European grave monuments in Portuguese, Dutch and English languages are not uncommon in Kerala, very rarely you find an epitaph in German. The tombstone of 31-year-old C. A. [Cornelius Arnold] Schier who died in 1935 is very concise, yet it gives you details such as his occupation, native place and the exact date of birth and death. Recently, I was contacted by Vera Richter from Germany, who sent me a link to an interesting report on Cornelius and how his grave was rediscovered in 2010 by a close family member. In fact, the Schier family had only received a picture of the fresh grave in 1935 and they saw the picture of the gravestone for the first time after 75 years! The article not only contains details of the family, but also some rare photographs of C A Schier with his daughter and videos. What is more fascinating is that, his daughter 94-year-old Elma Hoek (Schier) is still alive and shares her fond memories. Here is the link to the aforementioned article [German] and special thanks are due to Vera for sending me this important information. Today, Elma lives with her daughter Hille in Paraguay and she was kind enough to reach me sharing details about her wonderful story.

The epitaph of C A Schier

To summarize, Cornelius Arnold Schier was born on October 14, 1903 and was a native of Rhauderfehn, Germany. He was the 2nd officer of the steamer (Dampfer) Liebenfels. Cornelius died unexpectedly (reason unknown) at sea on March 29, 1935 at the age of 31 and was buried on March 30 in Cochin (Veli Cemetery). At the time of his death, Cornelius was left behind his young wife (Gesine Schier, nee Sinning, 27-year-old) and daughter (Elma Hoek, nee Schier, 5-year old). The current grave slab was probably donated by the Hansa shipping company of the ship ‘Liebenfels’.

The register preserved in the St Francis Church at Fort Cochin has information on C A Schier's burial. This register has 8 columns. The columns 4 to 8 has the following details: 4] Surname- Schier; 5] Age- 31; 6] Quality, Trade or Profession, &c &c &c- 2nd officer s/s Liebenfels; 7] When buried- 30th March 1935; and 8] Signature by whom buried-John Francis, C M S Pastor. Unfortunately, details in the first 3 columns, viz. 1] When died; 2] Cause of death; and 3] Christian [first name] are lost irrecoverably as the register is mostly moth eaten and in tatters. 

Details of C A Schier in the burial register of St Francis Church, Fort Cochin

The grave is located near the western compound wall and close to the south-west corner of the cemetery. When I had first observed this tomb in 2023, it was concealed under dirt and leaf litter, but the inscriptions are remarkably well preserved.  

Location of the grave in the cemetery [See the yellow arrow]