Announcing Cemetery Tour - Saturday, May 7, 2011 - 8:30a.m. - The Plains, Athens County, Ohio

Click on title to read about an upcoming Cemetery Tour to be held on May 7, 2011 in Athens County, Ohio.

Here are some details regarding the tour:

"Meet: At Eclipse Company Store near Athens for coffee, refreshments and sign in at 8:30AM.

Google Address: 11309 Jackson Drive, The Plains, Ohio 45788

Tour Time: 9AM-1:30PM

Tour Guides: Ken Bowald, Hocking College Associate Dean, Specialist in Heritage Interpretation; Beth Santore,

Society for Gravestone Enthusiasts

Cost: $25 Per Individual (OU and Hocking College Students $15);

Pre-Registration required.

Must be paid in advance to assure reservation. Make reservation by contacting the Little Cities of Black Diamonds Council at 1-866-394-3011 or via e-mail at lcbd@ohiohillcountry.org.

 Credit cards welcome.

Details: Tour includes free morning refreshments; in-tour snacks; and an $8 lunch coupon to spend at Appalachian Spring Festival upon return.

Travel is by air conditioned van.

Sorry, we unfortunately do not have a wheel chair accessible van at this time. Dress is casual. Some rugged hillside in cemeteries.

Children must be accompanied

by adults."

Circa 1860 Rules for the Bedford Cemetery - Bedford, Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Sharing a story featured in the current issue of "The Bedford Bee" published by the Bedford Historical Society of Bedford, Cuyahoga County, Ohio. 

Click on title to link to the Bedford Cemetery on "Find A Grave" where currently, 1,186 memorials are posted.

Happy Easter !!!

Happy Easter to everyone celebrating this most holy day. 

Don't forget you can post your Easter message and attach a flower or other appropriate symbol with it for your loved ones on "Find A Grave." 

It is a wonderful way to honor your deceased friends and family even if you are not able to physically visit their gravesites today. 

Featuring "Carole Murray's Photography" - Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Click on title to access the Carole Murray Photography's "smugmug.com" site and her work devoted exclusively to Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland on this particular link.  Note, you'll see many of the photographs are shown in black and white.  Per Carole, they are all also available in color.

Quoting from Carole:

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"We just went there a week or so ago, and I still have a lot to add from that trip. Plus, now that the nice weather is (hopefully) on it's way, I should be out and about taking more photos. If they're in Cuyahoga County, I'll probably add them to that gallery."

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"These are photos we've taken of some of the graves in Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio, along with some of the statues and monuments. We've tried to put them in alphabetic order -- unless a person is buried with a particular family.

Then we went ahead and put the photo with those family photos."
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If anyone would like to contact us, feel free to e-mail us at irishmurr57@gmail.com.

Spotlighting Carole Murray Photography's - "Cemeteries in Cuyahoga County"

I am sharing a link to "Carole Murray Photography" and "Cemeteries in Cuyahoga County" Ohio.  Click on title to access this unique site that features close ups as well as cemetery long shots.  

There are beautiful statues and plain stones alike and many have biographical information included for the deceased. 

The photographs are offered for sale on this site in various formats and sizes.  I'm sure you'll enjoy browsing this site! 

There is a neat slideshow feature on the site too!! 

Focusing on Fayette County, Ohio - Bloomingburg Cemetery -- Letter to the Editor in the Washington Court House "Record Herald" newspaper

Click on title to access story from the website of the newspaper Record Herald in Washington Court House, Fayette County, Ohio:

"4/8/2011 9:28:00

Bloomingburg Cemetery vs. Mother Nature"

Dear Editor:

"In defense of the Bloomingburg Cemetery and all cemeteries everywhere... unfortunately not only do we deal with Mother Nature and all she wants to give us but obviously the 'uninformed'! Mother Nature we can do nothing about. Ignorance of a situation is uncalled for but happens constantly. We are all upset about the condition of our cemetery at the present time but repair is underway. We also know exactly how it happened, you obviously do not!

Mr. Jones stated that he knew the backhoe operator and he would not have taken his equipment on to wet ground. Well, he did and does all the time as that is how you excavate for a grave. How is it you expect to dig for a burial? Do you think you can just wave a magic wand and everything is taken care of? We had two burials in a six to eight day period in that area so had to go into the same area twice. These things happen.

The first burial was my aunt. In order to get to her gravesite, they had to go through the wet area and that is when the mess began. While excavating for her gravesite the ground started collapsing and it became so huge that by the time they were finished they could have buried three caskets! Well, was the backhoe operators fault? No, it was just a bad situation with very wet conditions. What could they have done? I was upset with this whole situation believe me, but I also understood that the guys at the cemetery would not have had this happen for anything in the world if they could have prevented it. They are good caring people. There are just things that happen, it was not carelessness.

Mr. Jones, you are certainly entitled to your opinion, but I think you should just make sure you know ALL the facts before you speak. Come to a board meeting!

You are correct, it was a mess created by a backhoe and extremely wet conditions, but that mess is being taken care of. They have been filling graves all over the cemetery and have been for a week. They are working on the cemetery and have been for a week. They are working on the cutup area by tilling and reseeding. This work is not done in a day, it takes time. You are wrong Mr. Jones, it was not for lack of caring that this all has happened because we do care very much. It was a perfect storm of situations!

We also have a tree service coming, who has had us on his schedule for four weeks, the Cemetery has many trees to trim, stumps to ground out, and other spring preparatory things to be done. It all takes time."

Carol B. Cramer

Bloomingburg Cemetery

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Per the publication "Ohio Cemeteries 1803 - 2003" by the Ohio Genealogical Society, the Bloomingburg Cemetery straddles the Paint and Union Township boundaries in Fayette County, Ohio.

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Currently, "Find A Grave" has 390 memorials posted for the Bloomingburg Cemetery, including one famous burial which is for Corporal Henry Casey, Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor recipient. 

He served in the 20th Ohio Infantry, Company "C". 

Spotlighting Find A Grave Contributor - "LindaB" of Lorain County, Ohio

Below is a listing of the cemeteries Linda has posted memorials on the website:  "Find A Grave":

Virtual Cemeteries - LindaB

Amherst - East (424 names)

Brighton Veterans (53 names)

Brookdale cemetery (1 name)

Brownhelm Cemetery (6 names)

Calvary Cemetery (1 name)

Camden Burial Book (966 names)

Clarksfield Methodist (2 names)

Elmwood Civil war Vets (30 names)

Elmwood Veterans Memorial Circle (24 names)

Evergreen A (477 names)

Evergreen C (404 names)

evergreen J (101 names)

Evergreen K (14 names)

Godette Family (12 names)

Oakland Cemetery, Sandusky (5 names)

Ridgelawn (6 names)

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Click on title to view Linda's profile on "Find A Grave". 

Linda has posted over 27,000 memorials!!

Sharing information about Cemetery Transcription Software

Click on title to read about a Cemetery Transcription Software program that has been used and tested and proven to be worthwhile.

Here are some remarks about it from Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr. who used it for Maple Grove Cemetery in North Lewisburg, Ohio:

"They still have the original books in Rush Township, but they now also have a big binder for Maple Grove and another for Woodstock which have schematic pages in document protectors, arranged in Square sequential order.  Makes it easy to see and decipher what is sometimes unreadable in the original books.

 

I then took this information and created my database, using the CemEditor Pro-Version that I recommended.  Lots of keyboarding, and linking of photos, but it has proven to have been well-worth the time. 
The CemEditor software provides such great features, and is so easy to use."

Spotlighting Elmwood Cemetery in Lorain, Lorain County, Ohio

My thanks to Linda Bodnar of Amherst, Ohio for providing her scanned images of the Elmwood Cemetery Wall map and various sections of it as well as section blueprints. 

Elmwood Cemetery memorials on Find A Grave can be viewed by clicking on the title. 

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Linda has done an outstanding  job of recording burial information from the gravestones and is in the process of learning more regarding the layout of Elmwood Cemetery from the caretakers. 

Thank you, Linda, for all of your efforts! 

It is my pleasure to share some of Linda's photographs and descriptions here.

The full wall map for Elmwood Cemetery is shown above and various sections are shown below.

Above is the old Veteran's Memorial and below is a close up of the inscription on it

Below is the large Orthodox stone marking the Orthodox section of Elmwood Cemetery

Below are various blueprints of sections at Elmwood Cemetery

Knights of Pythias Markers below

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Additional information provided by Linda Bodnar:

Elmwood has 4 entrances from West to East on North Ridge Road.

Entrance 1: The most Westerly entrance enters at Section 5 which includes Helen Steiner Rice's grave and family lot on the east.

Section 5 like many of the sections is spread across the access road to include the area up to the Thew Mausoleum. Then to sections 6,7,8,9,10,11 . Section 5 and 6 are a 1/2 moon on the map. These are all flush grave markers here.

 

Entrance 2: approaches the chapel through sections 1 and 2. Behind the chapel is sections 3 & 4.

 

Entrance 3: leads through 12/13/14/15 again sections cross the access road on both sides.

Entrance 4: newest leads through section 16 and 17

"Unlike other cemeteries I've seen where the graves are prenumbered, in Elmwood's case, if I understand their system, the sections and blocks are prenumbered, the graves' numbers are based on the burial number.
I also believe they changed their system at some point, because there are some blocks that are alphabetical.

I included a picture of some blueprints that reference the Orthodox section which contain Macedonian, Russian, Serbian, Hungarian churches, these are located across several sections. Many of these are becoming difficult to read.
I learned that in some cases, the last name, first name are reversed on the stone. You'll see the potters field nearby."

Newark Memorial Gardens - News of recent thefts of bronze flower vases

Click on link to read an April 8, 2011 WHIOTV.com story about recent thefts of bronze and brass cemetery vases totaling over $13,000 from gravesites at the Newark Memorial Gardens Cemetery. 

Spotlighting Cleveland's "Outdoor Museum & Arboretum" - Lakeview Cemetery

It's officially Spring on the Calendar even though the weather can still play tricks on us here in Northeastern Ohio. 

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It is a good time to think 'all things cemeteries'!!

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Click on the link above to access Lakeview Cemetery's genealogy section where you can conduct interment searches of their burial records.

Story about the demise of the Greenfield Mausoleum, Greenfield, Highland County, Ohio

Click on title to read the Hillsboro Times-Gazette story about the dismantling of the Greenfield Mausoleum at the Greenfield Cemetery. 

Ohio Cemetery Laws and the Ohio Revised Code

Below are some facts to remember which are detailed in the Ohio Revised Code. 

Those featured below are courtesy of the Medina Ohio Cemetery Preservation Society's website under the heading: "Ohio Cemetery Laws".

(Their main link is shown above.)

"Ohio Cemetery Laws"

"Preserving cemeteries, in Ohio, is indeed the law!

See the following Ohio Revised Code sections:

#517.21 Abandonment - When a public or private cemetery has been "abandoned," a cemetery board or the Township Trustees may decide to remove the remains buried in that cemetery, but they must provide for the removal of all remains buried in that cemetery, for the removal of all stones and monuments marking the graves, for the re-interment of the remains, and for the re-erection of those stones or monuments in suitable public ground in the near vicinity, all of which shall be paid for from the township treasury.

#2909.05 Vandalism - No person, without privilege to do so, shall knowingly cause serious physical harm to any tomb, monument, gravestone, or other similar structure that is used as a memorial for the dead; to any fence, railing, curb, or other property that is used to protect, enclose or ornament any cemetery; or to a cemetery. Whoever violates this section is guilty of vandalism. "Cemetery" means any place of burial."

#2927.11 Desecration - No person, without privilege to do so, shall purposely deface, damage, pollute, or otherwise physically mistreat any of the following: Any historical or commemorative marker or any structure, Indian mound or earthwork, cemetery or site of great or historical or archaeological interest. "Cemetery" means any place of burial.

Spotlighting new blog: "Saveagrave.net"

A permanent link to this wonderful new blog entitled: "Saveagrave.net" is also being added for your convenience.

I also wish to thank "Saveagrave.net" for so kindly featuring this blog on its site today. 

While not solely focused on the state of Ohio, "Saveagrave.net" does, however, offer many useful and interesting links to such subjects as Associations, Funeral, Genealogy, Grief, and Pets & much more!!  

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Please take a moment and check out Saveagrave.net and re-visit it often to see what's new!!