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| David Miles' Marker | |
 David Miles' marker: The inscription reads "Here lyeth the body of Mr David Miles who died the 29 of Decembr 1674 and in ye 46 yeare of his age." Below this, Miles left all who come upon his marker a pointed reminder of their own mortality: "Hodie mihi cras tibi" (translated as "Today for me, tormorrow for you."). Click the marker for a better view of the inscription. |
Resting at the center of the crossing is the tombstone of David Miles. Exactly why Miles' marker occupies such a prominent position is not clear, but we do know Miles was a close family friend, if not a kinsman, of John Carter I, who built the first church at this site (completed in 1670). Like Carter, Miles used his holdings in lands, servants, and other property to join the ranks of the Lancaster gentry in the 1660s and 1670s. In January 1665/66, he acquired a 746-acre tract along the easternmost branch of the Corotoman River. He served as a justice of the peace for Lancaster, and periodically he witnessed important deeds for John Carter, Thomas Carter, and other leading planters in the county. Miles also served as one of the appraisers of John Carter's estate following Carter's death in January 1669/70. He was one of four men who witnessed Carter's will, and he and his wife, both of whom were to receive twenty shillings from Carter's estate, were the only persons outside Carter's immediate family to whom he bequeathed money. |
| These connections, as well as genealogical records, suggest Miles enjoyed an intimate and perhaps familial relationship with Carter, who lay buried in the chancel of the 1670 church before his marker was moved to the chancel of the 1735 brick church. David Miles died in December of 1674, and it is likely he, too, was buried in some relation to the 1670 church. As work on the brick church neared completion, Robert Carter, or perhaps his sons, who helped finish the church after his death in 1732, may have chosen to place Miles' marker at the crossing as a way to honor this man they knew to be a relative or close friend of their ancestor, John Carter. Regardless of the exact reasons, with its elegant inscription, precise lettering, and prominent location, David Miles’ marker speaks clearly of the important role he played in the life of the Carters and the churches they constructed for Christ Church Parish. |
 Miles' marker sits in the center of the crossing at Christ Church. It is made of Purbeck stone, the same stone used in the rest of the pavers in the aisles. |
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