I found this one quite interesting, also! (Sorry, I couldn't resist passing it on! <g>) Diana [email protected] Gathering Information from Tombstones by Elaine Powell Dating Tombstones: One way to help find the era your ancestor was buried is to examine the material from which the tombstone is made. If your ancestor has a stone made of slate or common fieldstone (except wood used by pioneers), chances are the stone dates from 1796-1830. * If the stone is flat-topped hard marble, dates are about 1830-1849. * If the "mystery" stone is round or pointed soft marble with cursive inscriptions, look for a date of 1845-1868. * Masonic four-sided stones began in 1850 and are still in use today. * Pylons, columns and all exotic-style monuments are usually dated 1860-1900. * Zinc monuments date from 1870-1900. * Granite, now common, came into use about 1900. If the writing is too faded to read, use a 75 watt black light bulb in any lamp that casts light directly on the written message. The writing will miraculously appear. You can take photos of tombstones to record the information. Be careful not to take the photo with a flash and stand directly in front of the tombstone. It might cause a "flashback" and you will have a large white spot in the middle of your photo and you won't be able to read the information on the stone. The best condition to take the photo is with light behind you, using no flash. However, some older stones don't photograph well, so you might want to take some tombstone rubbings.