How many times we find nestled in a news story a "tidbit" about an Ohio cemetery?
The cemetery references might have come up in a "Google" search and that is how you found in the story. Or not.
References to local cemeteries can be found in news reports that include such subjects as township meeting notices where the topics are listed or meeting minutes; Historical or genealogical society meeting postings, tax levy results, or investigative TV / newspaper reports.
The list goes on, as they say.
It is beneficial to take note of these instances in particular if they are about a cemetery of concern to you.
There is a possibility the cemetery will be in the news again.
If you don't live close to your cemetery of concern or cemetery in crisis, learning all you can about its status will help you know what condition it is in, and such changes as new ownership, or new rules being implemented.
On the plus side, you could learn some interesting history about a cemetery buried further down (no pun intended!) in a small paragraph of the story.:
One example is:
"CCGS learns history of Clarksville" by the Clinton County Genealogical Society (Ohio)
"The local cemeteries have often been misnamed. The original cemetery on Main Street west of Clarksville was originally known as Smalley’s Cemetery. It was later misidentified as the Yeazell cemetery, and is sometimes known as the Old Cemetery. The Yeazell cemetery may actually be the cemetery near Creek Road which is identified as either the Stanfield or Austin cemetery. Much of the confusion occurred due to misidentification during the WPA projects of the 1930s."
This easy example is from WTOL TV in Toledo. Here we see the word "cemetery" in the title which is a "dead giveaway" (again no pun intended!) that we are going to learn something special about a cemetery that just might be good to know!:
"Wood County Museum to honor past role as poor farm with special cemetery dedication"
Excerpt:
"Beyond the Museum, about 100 yards west of the stately brick building, lies a pauper’s cemetery where hundreds of the residents were laid to rest. Many of the graves lay unmarked for decades after their numbered headstones had been stolen. Just who and how many were buried there was a mystery."
Not quite so obvious is this example:
"These are the 15 best dividend stocks for investing in retirement planning":
Scrolling down the list we find:
"Service Corp. International"
"Service
Corp. International (NYSE: SCI) is in the opposite direction of health
care. This is the top death-care company in North America, with more
than 2,000 funeral homes and cemeteries in 45 states and
internationally. It has made multiple acquisitions over time and has a
market value of nearly $8 billion. SCI owns crematoriums, cemeteries,
funeral homes, end of life services and so on. With the baby boomers
still having elderly parents and themselves now retiring in droves,
there will be a long and growing client list for the next two decades or
so. Dating back to the 1960s, SCI resumed paying a dividend, and that
is now up to a yield of about 1.6 percent, with lots of earnings
coverage to keep increasing its payout for years ahead. Remember, the
great game of life is one that none of us get out of alive."
Dignity Memorial Cemeteries in Ohio are SCI owned and operated cemeteries. Currently the website lists that there are 16 Dignity Memorial Cemeteries in Ohio.
Keep doing your online research regularly to check out what new could be happening with your cemetery of interest whether there are any known problems going on with it or not - so you can stay up to date!
