Niall, >I do think it would be a great idea to have all inscriptions (say, pre 1940 or >1950 or some other arbitrary date) on headstones in South Coast cemetries >available on the web. > >Has this been done in a number of south coast towns already? I think you'll find that most cemeteries have already been transcribed by the local HS or FHG, and in many cases printed transcripts are for sale by these groups. Thus, they are hardly likely to agree to have their work published and available for free on the web, to the detriment of their sales. The alternative of course is for someone to make a fresh transcript, so that copyright is not an issue. However, this raises the obvious question of what is there to gain by duplicating work already done when there are so many other unindexed subjects just begging for someone to get stuck into them. I think if you check the SAG library at Richmond Villa, you will be surprised at the number of different cemetery transcripts already held. In most cases these are small country cemeteries - it is a lot quicker for a local society to record details of a few hundred graves than it is for even a large metro society to record many thousands of entries in some of the large cemeteries. Look how long it took to have the Rookwood fiche prepared - many years. However, as widespread as the coverage by SAG and other societies is, your suggestion will have a lasting benefit if it encourages even one society to record details from a cemetery known not to have already been transcribed. So readers, please check with your local societies and with SAG regarding cemeteries in your area, and if you do identify one which has not been recorded, then let's not leave it until too late. John Graham johngrah@ozemail.com.au GENEALOGY FROM GERRINGONG http://www.ozemail.com.au/~johngrah/