Recently, I have started searching Ebay for the term "Ohio Cemeteries" and the results produced mostly post cards.
Since I like old post cards and Ohio cemeteries, they have made a great combination for me to spend some time researching for my favorite subjects in a single place. And, both deal with Ohio history!
Since I like old post cards and Ohio cemeteries, they have made a great combination for me to spend some time researching for my favorite subjects in a single place. And, both deal with Ohio history!
When I gaze at these old postcards, I am amazed at how cemeteries looked about a hundred years ago -- what I can see despite the surfaces' dusty and smudgy sepia tones that obscure the once clear finer details.
The cemetery monuments and markers that were erected in the 1800s were still standing straight and tall. They did not appear to have been covered in lichens. The grounds were neatly trimmed. The landscape was void of broken tablet stones that we sadly see all too often today.
I know that I am gazing at monuments and markers lovingly erected for our ancestors by their closest kin who hoped they would last for a very long time. Some have lasted, however, as we know some have not.
The cemetery monuments and markers that were erected in the 1800s were still standing straight and tall. They did not appear to have been covered in lichens. The grounds were neatly trimmed. The landscape was void of broken tablet stones that we sadly see all too often today.
I know that I am gazing at monuments and markers lovingly erected for our ancestors by their closest kin who hoped they would last for a very long time. Some have lasted, however, as we know some have not.
Diamond, Palmyra Twp., Portage County, Ohio
Possibly the Palmyra Cemetery on Find A Grave
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If the cemetery's name and location are included on the postcard then the focus can shift to accessing websites such as "Find A Grave" to see if the cemetery is listed there.
Most of the time the cemetery is listed; however, it might now be shown under another name.
"Find A Grave" normally cross-references by known alternative cemetery names which helps pinpoint the correct cemetery that matches your postcard.
Most "Find A Grave" individual cemetery sites contain at least one official cemetery photograph.
An added bonus comes when a cemetery postcard is listed on "Find A Grave", or another website, for a cemetery that you are familiar with. If that is the case, then you can compare current scenes from the cemetery to what is imprinted on the postcard more easily. And, you may have taken photographs of your own to use as a reference as well.
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Try to take note of any unusual features that appear on your cemetery postcard such as a holding vault or chapel. It most likely is still there today.
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Also, if any names (given and/or surnames) are readable on the gravemarkers on the postcard, then you can search for those specifically on "Find A Grave."
Also, if any names (given and/or surnames) are readable on the gravemarkers on the postcard, then you can search for those specifically on "Find A Grave."
If a memorial is posted for the person with the name, there is a good possibility a current photo of the gravemarker is also posted which enables a comparison to be made with how it looked at the time the postcard picture was taken.
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You can scan your postcard (front and reverse) and enjoy sharing it with others whom you know would be as thrilled as you are to view it!
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Lastly for this post,
Wishing you a Happy New Year and
Happy cemetery postcard hunting all through the year!
