Transforming the gravesite monument of 2nd great-grandparents and their infant daughter meant saving them

The once grand monument with a bible and prayer book carved on its top, marks the gravesites of my second great-grandparents on the Duvall side of my family.  Sadly, however, it had developed condition issues that could no longer be ignored for many reasons. It needed much more help than I alone could give it. 

My second great-grandparents were Jeremiah Duvall and Sigariah (Simmons) Duvall of Pickaway County, Ohio. 

Jeremiah, his wife Sigariah, and their infant daughter who died October 29, 1843 at age 1 day, were buried at the Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Pickaway County, Ohio.  

Jeremiah Duvall's parents were Benjamin Penn Duvall and Nancy (Reed) Duvall buried at Green Lawn Cemetery, in Columbus, Ohio. 

Sigariah (Simmons) Duvall's father was Stephen Simmons, a War of 1812 veteran.

The base of the Jeremiah and Sigariah Duvall monument had been severely cracked and sinking for several years. The structure of the base was compromised.  Its ability to keep the monument standing straight was undermined because of it.

  

Also, the monument needed additional cleaning. It had been a couple of years since it was cleaned with "D/2 Biological Solution".  

 

Propped up next to the monument was the small broken marker for Jeremiah and Sigariah Duvall's unnamed "Infant Daughter." It had cracked off at its base just below ground level. 

 

The photo below shows the infant's marker next to the monument several years prior to restoration.:  

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The side-by-side photos below of before and after cleaning, repairing, and the resetting work was completed, tell the story of the total transformation that took place for these two Duvall grave markers. They also received more support and protection from weed whackers and lawnmowers with the addition of an underlying concrete pad.:

(Below)

 Additional photos  

following the completion

 of all of the needed

 transformative tasks.

 

The transformation work for Jeremiah and Sigariah Duvall's monument and their unnamed infant daughter's marker was completed by:
Mark Smith, gravestone conservator and owner of 

"Gravestone Transformations.":

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 Facebook:

Gravestone Transformations

Website:

Gravestone Transformations 

"Local Historians Re-Write the History of Forest Cemetery" - from the "Toledo Blade" - July 29, 2018

When inaccuracies are discovered -- history demands corrections!

Thankfully, this duo of local historians for Toledo's Forest Cemetery made it their mission to make them!

"Local Historians Re-Write the History of Forest Cemetery" - from the "Toledo Blade" - July 29, 2018 

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The Forest Cemetery in Toledo lists 96,224 interments on the website "Find A Grave"

Cemetery Vandalism Continues at Ohio Cemeteries both large and small

From the "Herald-Dispatch" in Huntington, West Virginia, published on July 3rd by Luke Creasy are details from the latest update about the current state of the damage at the The Rome-Proctorville Cemetery in Proctorville, Lawrence County, Ohio.
Sharing these excerpts from this story because I feel they are insightful, and are definitely good to know and understand if one of your ancestor's stones was damaged -- not knocked over and no other type of damage.
We learn from the details that the degree and type of damage to a grave marker can dictate if those responsible for the cemetery accepts responsibility to properly repair it.

Also, please note that it is crucial to be sure who is responsible for a cemetery. The example as stated here demonstrates that if there is an older cemetery adjacent to a newer cemetery there might be a different owner for the older one. Thus, if both cemeteries suffer damage it cannot automatically be assumed that the same entity (i.e. township, church, village, etc.) owns both cemeteries and will handle remediation of damages at both cemeteries.:
"Rome-Proctorville Cemetery caretaker Ron Jenkins said he wants to get the headstones in the upright position as quickly as possible and is working with Lawson Monument Company in Huntington to get the headstones off the ground and resealed. Jenkins estimated the cost at $150 per headstone.
Lawson began repairs at the cemetery on Monday morning. Fourteen stones were picked up, placed and sealed on Monday. Jenkins said Lawson has been very accommodating, and remaining repairs will be made by the end of the week.

"(Lawson) said some of them have permanent damage on them, but we're not going to be responsible in replacing those. We're just trying to get them all set back up and sealed back down."
Permanent damage to a gravestone includes any surface damage to the stone such as cracks, scratches and chips. Jenkins said that families that have been affected by permanent damage will not be forced to replace headstones but do have the option of purchasing new stones.
In response to the crime, Bowen said the cemetery will institute increased security steps moving forward. High-definition surveillance cameras soon will be added, as well as additional measures that Bowen did not want to disclose at the time. He said the cemetery's goal is to prevent this situation from happening in the future.
According to Jenkins, there were additional headstones overturned in the Old Rome Cemetery that neighbors Rome-Proctorville; however, they are not responsible for upkeep on those grounds."

Some News Stories about recent cemetery vandalism in Ohio.:

From The "Toledo Blade": Thursday, June 28, 2018 - Forest Cemetery in Toledo:

"Headstones Again Vandalized at Forest Cemetery"

Contact Sarah Elms at selms@theblade.com, 419-724-6103, or on Twitter @BySarahElms.

"More than 100 headstones have been toppled at Forest Cemetery this month, and many of the vandalized grave-markers date back to the 1800s.

The most recent act of vandalism — about 12 headstones knocked over — was discovered Wednesday, Cemeteries Foreman Luke Smigielski said. The city runs five cemeteries, and only Forest Cemetery has experienced the vandalism this summer, he said.
More than 50 headstones were discovered knocked over on June 11, and another 42 were found toppled June 18. Forest Cemetery spans 94 acres and is home to more than 94,000 headstones, many of which weigh hundreds to thousands of pounds."
Forest Cemetery in Toledo on "Find A Grave"
The "Grave Tracker" - Forest Cemetery
 City of Toledo

From the "Dayton Daily News" - Monday, July 2, 2018 - Miamisburg, Montgomery County, Ohio:

"Highland Cemetery gravestone damaged over weekend"

Craig Weaver's memorial on "Find A Grave"

Photo of Craig Weaver's grave marker prior to its destruction

Side-by-Side Photo Comparisons Help Tell the Story of How Cleaning Methods Work on Gravestones

Thanks to a neat free website called quickpicturetools I am having a great time with formatting and saving my before and after cleaning photographs of various gravestones that I have been collecting.  

If you are anything like me, you don't have a lot of software on your computer, so a free website that actually works can really help where you can try your hand at producing side-by-side photographs and adding in some text with them.  It takes a bit of experimenting and practicing with the program, but a person can get the hang of it in a short period of time and save their creations directly to their computer, flash drive, cloud, etc. 

Below are a couple of photographs of the same monument taken about 19 years apart.

 They are of the Jeremiah and Sigariah Simmons Duvall monument at the Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Pickaway County, Ohio. 

The photograph on the left illustrates what the monument looked like before I had done any cleaning at all to it.  I'm sure it was my first visit to the cemetery to see it. 

The photograph on the right was taken July 16, 2015 after using D/2 Biological Solution to clean the whole monument.

There had been some water and brushing sessions on the monument over the years, however, water alone does not stop biological regrowth.  So, improvement on the monument was only marginal. 

I am hoping the Duvall monument will look as good or perhaps even better when I return to visit it next year than it did right after its 2015 cleaning. 

Spotlighting Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Pickaway County, Ohio

I visited Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Pickaway County, Ohio on July 19, 2012.  I found evidence of the aftermath of the violent thunderstorms that had rolled through the area not long before.  There were tree branches down in the cemetery. Some limbs were cracked from tree trunks and hanging down which were awaiting removal.  

Most of my time at Forest Cemetery was spent walking around in Section 11 where my Duvall family is buried - Jeremiah and Sigariah (Simmons) Duvall and some of their children and other family members.  

Fortunately, the tree nearest to many of the Duvall gravesites had only a couple of cracked branches that were still attached to it.  Thus, no damage was done to any of the grave markers or the large Duvall monument.

Below are a couple of photographs taken that illustrate the cracked branches on the tree near the gravesites of my Duvall ancestors buried at Forest Cemetery:

Link to video about thefts and damage at Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Ohio

Please click on the title above for a WBNS 10-TV report about recent thefts and damage at Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Ohio. This was brought to my attention by Beth Santore. Thank you Beth. Hopefully, the perpetrator(s) will be caught and prosecuted.

http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=65528951228&h=zH1Zz&u=Xgw7Y&ref=mf

More before and after cleaning views of Jeremiah Duvall & family tombstones at Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Ohio

Please click on title for a slide show (from Photobucket) of the Jeremiah and Sigariah (Simmons) Duvall family members tombstones. Some shots show before and after cleaning views. All burials are in Section 11 at the Forest Cemetery (located on Court Street in Circleville, Ohio - Phone#: 1-740-474-4401)

View of Jeremiah and Sigariah Duvall stone before and after cleaning

Before (left) and after (right) photographs of the Jeremiah and Sigariah (Simmons) Duvall tombstone at Forest Cemetery in Circleville, Ohio.

Cleaning on original tombstone by Linda and Ron Ellis in September of 2005.

Notes:

Duvall, Jeremiah , died Jan 13, 1875, aged 60 ys 7 ms 2 ds and Sigariah Simmons , wife of Jeremiah, died Oct 13, 1903, aged 79 y 2 m 3d Duvall Bible records and the Pickaway County Probate records show that Jeremiah Duvall died January 13, 1875. However, Forest Cemetery records show January 22, 1886. So, apparently he was buried somewhere else prior to that date and then reinterred.

Bible records show his date of birth as June 11, 1814.

Jeremiah Duvall Bible records her date of birth as August 5, 1824 (not 10 Aug 1824). They were married January 19, 1843.

Jeremiah Duvall's license reads:
The license of Jeremiah Duvall as an Exhorter in the Methodist Episcopal Church is hereby renewed by order of the Quarterly Meeting Conference of South Bloomfield Circuit, Lancaster Ohio Annual Conference. Dated September 20, 1873 and signed by W. L. Harvey, Presiding Elder.

Sigariah Simmons Duvall died October 13, 1903.

Jeremiah and Sigariah (Simmons) Duvall are my great-great grandparents.