Wednesday January 22, 1851: This morning about nine o’clock the son-in-law of Mr. Orrin Fuller of New Lebanon south part, came to my house and brought the news of the death of brother Sylvester Holcomb. He died a few minutes past midnight last night. He died very suddenly. He had complained from the time he came to Mr. Fuller which was last Saturday, of being weak and a pain in one foot and leg. They called Doctor Quite in the morning after he died to examine what caused immediate death and the Doctor pronounced the complaint irrecipalous (this is the disease erysipelas, caused by streptocccus bacteria in the bloodstream) and by putting his feet in warm water it terminated fatal or immediate death. I started about eleven o’clock and went to Mr. Fuller where brother Sylvester died, and in a short time the wife of Sylvester and son Kendall got there. It was the choice of the widow and Rufus Kendall to carry the corpse home to Richmond and have the funeral there to his house and bury him there, funeral to be on Friday at ten o’clock.
Thursday: I took my cutter and carried my daughter to Hancock to Lapum’s store and she purchased a few articles to prepare for the funeral and paid the cash. We called to several places on the way to borrow mourning clothes.
Friday: Today I took my cutter and carried my wife and daughter Charlotte to Richmond to the funeral of brother Sylvester Holcomb at the house of Rufus Kendal. The Rev. Doctor Todd preached. My daughter Sarah rode with Hiram Newton to funeral together with his wife and mother. My two sons did not attend the funeral for they were from home.