From: Ken Walker (ken.walker@MSCSOFTWARE.COM)
Date: Mon Feb 28 2000 - 23:18:46 CST
Katherine Coates wrote:
>
>I liked this one: at the cemetery where we place flags on Memorial Day,
>several of the really old grave sites are getting permanently buried under
>erosive mud from the landscapers. How about a veteran grave site maintenance
>project?
>
I need to add my 0.02 worth here...You need to be "very careful"
when you are working on a cemetery site. My son's Eagle project
involves the original city cemetery (dates to 1880 or so). He is
working with the city & county Historical Commission, the city
Parks & Rec dept, and a local consultant. It seems a great deal
of irreversible damage is done by well-intentioned volunteers.
Folks move head stones, foot stones and broken pieces of these
stones where "they think they should be". Also, "just cleaning"
a headstone improperly can cause years of accelerated damage.
According to the experts, one should never move or alter something
in a graveyard without permission.
This specific example may not be a source of problems, but I would
be make sure all involved are trained to do things in a manner
acceptable to the proper authorities.
We have both learned quite a bit about the historical importance of
grave sites, and the need to NOT alter a site. One of the key parts
of his project is "training" his volunteer crew in proper grave site
procedures. It has been an eye-opening experience, and he has just
started planning the darn thing!
There is a good web site with more info:
Association for Gravestone Studies, http://www.gravestonestudies.org/
Ken Walker
mailto:ken.walker@mscsoftware.com
