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Cemetery Photo Gallery
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One of the more unusual headstones in our family cemetery, this man was a bachelor. Note the upside down heart carved around the hand pointing up to the heavens. Evidently he was also a nature lover, symbolized by the two leaves carved into the headstone. Notice how the bottom half of this headstone is so well preserved. This part of the stone was found 8 inches below the surface. The top half has been weathering the elements for many decades. Until repairs can be made, we covered the bottom half with the top to preserve it's condition. To repair a stone broken in half such as this one, each piece can be drilled in two or three places on the broken edge, pins inserted and glued. The pins should be made of a stainless steel material, as material such as rebar will cause rust stains and will streak the headstones over time. As the two pieces are being joined they should also be glued, taking care not to use excessive amounts that drip down the headstone when pressed together. There is a high risk of the headstone breaking up or cracking if the stone material is old and soft, therefore, I do not recommend this method unless it's done by a professional restorer. A new 4-5" concrete base has been poured to encase these two pieces together. Make sure the base and headstone will not lie absolutely flat, but at an angle where rain water will run off. You can make the form for the base as you would for pouring a sidewalk. The depth of the concrete is usually no more than 4-8 inches under the headstone.Set the headstone into partially dry concrete before the concrete hardens to seam them together. Use some gravel underneath to keep from settling. A Revolutionary War veteran's original warn headstone is encased with a governmental marker using a similar method as for Photo 4. Check the LINKS page for information for obtaining a veteran headstone. An easy way to place severely damaged headstones back together it to place them on a mounded bed of gravel. The stone pieces won't shift around if bound with metal or plastic brick edging forms. The gravel also provides a near maintanence free base. There is usually a 1-2 foot high mound of medium sized crushed and tightly packed gravel used as the base to support the encased headstone. Abandoned cemeteries hold surprises for many restorers. A headstone was found two feet below the surface by dowsing for graves. The person on the right is using a sturdy poking rod to locate the base for the headstone. Use caution when poking and digging so as not to mar the surface of the stone. Old headstones usually had a base to hold it in place. After the headstone is inserted into the notch, the hole is filled in, leaving about 1/2 to 1/3 of the height of the headstone above ground. Adding a layer of several inches of gravel under the base before resetting will keep it from sinking. You never know what you will find in researching cemeteries. A cedar tree has grown around this ancestor's headstone. Evidence that this cemetery was neglected for a long period of time, this is a place that needs further investigation. One should dowse for graves in some of the open and seemingly "empty" areas to see if more headstones or lost graves can be located.
One of the more unusual headstones in our family cemetery, this man was a bachelor. Note the upside down heart carved around the hand pointing up to the heavens. Evidently he was also a nature lover, symbolized by the two leaves carved into the headstone.
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