How to you prep for a visit to a Cemetery?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Candy Hulbert Ditkowski on July 9, 2009 at 3:09pm

Hi Russ...I didn't see this on your original blog post, so I will mention it here.

SHOES! It's all about the shoes!

Got to make sure you've got some decent shoes on your feet! (Me personally just because I don't want snakes slithering across my toes if I'm wearing flip-flops/sandals) But there are definately smarter reasons to make sure to wear proper attire on your feet.

Permalink Reply by Sharon Gillis on July 9, 2009 at 6:04pm

It's all in the List! I print out a report from Reunion of people who were born, died, or buried in a particular town. Although I will most likely be concentrating on one or two families, I am always surprised at who else I find.

Permalink Reply by Terri Sprague on July 9, 2009 at 9:11pm

I go to the mortuary that maintains the records of the cemetery and find out where the grave sites are that I'm visiting. I already have a map of the cemetery layout. I wear shoes that I can walk, for a long time, on uneven ground in. I wear clothes that I don't mind getting dirty, and that are comfortable. I also carry plant and bush trimmers in my purse (I've had to use them more often than I would like to!), as well as some large cosmetic brushes to brush off some of the headstones and a pair of leather gloves. I try to remember to wear a hat and use sunscreen. I also have extra batteries for my camera, as well as paper to write on.

I, also, make sure that my cell phone is on and fully charged so that my husband can call me when I'm a few hours longer than I had planned. :-)

Permalink Reply by Michael X Bell on July 10, 2009 at 1:41pm

Bring lots of AA batteries for the camera!

Terri Sprague said:

I go to the mortuary that maintains the records of the cemetery and find out where the grave sites are that I'm visiting. I already have a map of the cemetery layout. I wear shoes that I can walk, for a long time, on uneven ground in. I wear clothes that I don't mind getting dirty, and that are comfortable. I also carry plant and bush trimmers in my purse (I've had to use them more often than I would like to!), as well as some large cosmetic brushes to brush off some of the headstones and a pair of leather gloves. I try to remember to wear a hat and use sunscreen. I also have extra batteries for my camera, as well as paper to write on.

I, also, make sure that my cell phone is on and fully charged so that my husband can call me when I'm a few hours longer than I had planned. :-)

Permalink Reply by Ethel Marie Silcock on July 10, 2009 at 5:59pm

I checked out your blog posts and find them very informational. I came across FindAGrave while researching my husbands family, and I am so thankful for all the people that put in their time and energy taking these photos and getting other information posted as it has helped me fill in a lot of blanks. My next step is to become a cemetery photographer/information gatherer to help others with their quests.

Permalink Reply by Erica Larsson on July 10, 2009 at 6:07pm

Always bring a small garden spade/shovel, garbage bag (plastic grocery store variety) gardening gloves and possibly rain boots! I leave those items in my car at all times in case I should suddenly decide to stop.

The garden gloves are for pulling weeds around a headstone if time permits...and for those like me who dislike spiders or other creepy crawlers. The small spade/shovel can be used to lift sod (or weed like grass) as long as you do not mark, or damage. the headstone w/it in any way. The boots, while not very comfortable, have allowed me to walk around numersous cemeteries just after the rain has cleared.
Happy hunting!

Permalink Reply by Terri Sprague on July 10, 2009 at 10:19pm

One of the reasons I use makeup brushes (usually blush brushes) are that they are so very soft.

Erica Larsson said:

Always bring a small garden spade/shovel, garbage bag (plastic grocery store variety) gardening gloves and possibly rain boots! I leave those items in my car at all times in case I should suddenly decide to stop.

The garden gloves are for pulling weeds around a headstone if time permits...and for those like me who dislike spiders or other creepy crawlers. The small spade/shovel can be used to lift sod (or weed like grass) as long as you do not mark, or damage. the headstone w/it in any way. The boots, while not very comfortable, have allowed me to walk around numersous cemeteries just after the rain has cleared.
Happy hunting!

Permalink Reply by Poppy Gladstone on July 11, 2009 at 3:54am

I keep a grocery sack in my car with supplies: nylon brush (others may be too rough), strong scissors (to cut overgrown grass. I find these work better than garden clippers), and cloth to clean the gravestones. In my area in S. CA, most cemeteries have the little flat gravestones so the ground crews can drive over them. Several years ago, I read Sharon Carmack's book about Cemetery Research. I highly recommend this book; and all her books. She gave instructions and a list of supplies to take for preparing to photo the gravestones. As mentioned in several other comments, wear walking shoes, not sandals. In Rose Hills Memorial Park, the closest to my house, the hills can be quite steep. I don't know how the ground crews can dig with their machines on many of the steep hills, but they do. Sandals would slip on the hills. As for snakes, Rose Hills is well maintained and there is no overgrowth, although someone was bitten several weeks ago. It made all the local papers and even some of the TV news stations. The man was pretty stupid, though. When the family arrived at their family grave area, there was a rattlesnake curled up on it. It was a sunny day and he was probably sunning himself. This man actually tried to catch it and of coarse he got bitten. He was taken to the local cemetery in time, thanks to cell phones. He must be OK as no more news has come out about him. The family should have just waited till it left or come back another time.

Permalink Reply by Russ Worthington on July 11, 2009 at 8:20am

Thank you ALL for your replies to this question. You all have added to my list.

Let me expand the question to:

Do you take any information from the Find-A-Grave website?.

For example: You are responding to and have claimed a Photo Request, do you pull any more information for that Cemetery?

Thank you,

Russ

Permalink Reply by Shanna Beauvais-Riley on July 23, 2009 at 12:59pm

If I am doing a Photo Request, I print out the request or - if the person has a memorial page already (usually does) - I just print that out. That way I have the name and dates. If I am looking for a few, I might have a number of pages. I also have a map of the cemetery I visit most frequently for photo requests in my purse and in my car (has freaked ppl out who came across them, "Why are you carrying around a map of a cemetery??"). Heh, heh.

Permalink Reply by Russ Worthington on July 23, 2009 at 3:08pm

Shanna,

Thank you.

What I have started to do, which is one reason for me starting this discussion, is to take more then just the request.

I don't have a cemetery that I am out to take all of the pictures, as there are a number of Active Find-A-Grave photographers in the area. But I do print out a couple of pages of Interments the are surrounding the Requested Individual.

I now have a portable file box, with information on each cemetery that I visit. Just in case I get diverted to another cemetery that day. (Have done that a couple of times). I also have a notebook with basic information that I print out of Outlook.

I only have one cemetery, so far, where I have a map.

In addition, I have started to look online for Cemetery Listings already. Ancestry.com and several Rootsweb sites have information as well.

Thank you,

Russ

Permalink Reply by Patricia Aceves Wyble on July 12, 2009 at 10:48am

When the family arrived at their family grave area, there was a rattlesnake curled up on it. It was a sunny day and he was probably sunning himself. This man actually tried to catch it and of coarse he got bitten. He was taken to the local cemetery in time, thanks to cell phones. He must be OK as no more news has come out about him. The family should have just waited till it left or come back another time.

I heard he was shooing it away from his kids or something. The amazing thing is that he was even able to use his cell phone. Maybe it's because my family members are on the other side of SkyRose Chapel (up the hill and down into the valley), but I have zero reception 99% of the time.

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