hmmm... i sometimes work out with a contractor at my gym, so i'll talk to him about getting one. he might give me a good price! i just received an e-mail from a local woman who has a plat map i can copy. that will help narrow down the search for buried stones -- no use in looking where there are empty plots. it'll also help with knowing where we can safely mow! scot -----Original Message----- From: ohiobuck@sbcglobal.net To: INPCRP-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Thu, 20 Jul 2006 9:21 AM Subject: Re: [INPCRP] probing with steel rod I picked mine up at a local sewage contactor. When they learned what I planned to use it for (as well as not being able to determine the price of the probe), they gave it to me. Cathi "L.A. CLUGH" <clugh_la@msn.com> wrote: Scott and list, I have two thoughts here to share. 1. It's one thing Scott to help clean up and put stones back up where they belong. It's another one to disturb the ground by digging in a cemetery. This is where the probes are helpful in locating the missing pieces or complete stones where you find spaces open. This is also the are you need to have that signed permission slip from the Trustee or permit from the DHPA. I hope you already know this. Most of the time the missing pieces are only 2 to 6 inches under ground. And yes, you do need to probe with ease. All soils are different. The project I'm working on has soil with a lot of gravel under the surface. It's hard to push the probe in very far. We have found it's easier to do this after a big rain, or do all this locating work in the early spring when the soil is very soft. Once you have dug out any missing pieces, it's important to replace that soil around the area you dug out. Walt has taught us to use a canvas or tarp to hold on to all the dirt you dig out. That way it will all be there when your done. Replacing the grass fragments on top so they can grow again. If you think about all this first, it will save you headaches later. You don't want to leave any low areas the mowers wheels can fall into and do more damage to stones. Or any holes someone can twist a foot into and get hurt later. 2. My probes are homemade. But others have seen them in hardware stores in the area. You should ask for Tile Probes. Contractors will use them to find the sewer lines and broken tiles. Just go easy and make sure you have the whole tombstone area located (like all the edges) before you start digging. There is always more to learn, thank you for asking. This is why there are two workshop each year. There is more to this restoration than you can learn in one trip. Heck I've been to at least 20. If you want to do it right, you have to learn all you can. The workshop are very affordable workshop. I've seen others that cost over $600.00 + room and travel. LA ----- Original Message ----- From: "Rich Green" To: Sent: Thursday, July 20, 2006 10:07 AM Subject: Re: [INPCRP] probing with steel rod > Sure will. > > Got ours here: Forestry Suppliers: http://www.forestry-suppliers.com/ > > Also should have them here: http://www.benmeadows.com/home.htm > > Regards, > > Rich Green > Historic Archaeological Research > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Sheila Rooker > To: INPCRP-L@rootsweb.com > Sent: Thursday, July 20, 2006 9:48 AM > Subject: Re: [INPCRP] probing with steel rod > > > Rich, > > Do you want to share with everyone where we might purchase one of > these probes?Sheila > > Rich Green wrote: > The probes designed with a ball tip are designed slightly larger in > diameter at the business end creating an enlarged pathway for the shaft of > the probe. The only resistance to insertion is the ball tip itself. A > probe like this is very easy to push through even the hardest ground > because there is no friction along the long axis of the probe. > > Obviously, the ball tip is less likely to damage material it comes in > contact with, both because it requires less force to insert and because it > is a smooth spherical surface rather than a sharp pointed one. > > > Rich Green > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Jackbriles@aol.com > To: INPCRP-L@rootsweb.com > Sent: Wednesday, July 19, 2006 10:46 PM > Subject: Re: [INPCRP] probing with steel rod > > > > Scot > > I'm not the sharpest tack in the box, but I use a pointed probe, (The > part > of the state I live in you have to) but if I ever pushed hard enough to > chip or > crack a piece of buried tombstone rather than push slowly and gently, > not > knowing how deep it is, I believe I should quit probing altogether. > > > Jack E Briles Sr > Floyd Co. In. > _jackbriles@aol.com_ (mailto:jackbriles@aol.com) > > > ==== INPCRP Mailing List ==== > ==== INPCRP Mailing List ==== THIS IS A CEMETERY ----- "Lives are commemorated - deaths are recorded - families are reunited - memories are made tangible - and love is undisguised. This is a cemetery. "Communities accord respect, families bestow reverence, historians seek information and our heritage is thereby enriched. "Testimonies of devotion, pride and remembrance are carved in stone to pay warm tribute to accomplishments and to the life - not the death - of a loved one. The cemetery is homeland for family memorials that are a sustaining source of comfort to the living. "A cemetery is a history of people - a perpetual record of yesterday and sanctuary of peace and quiet today. A cemetery exists because every life is worth loving and remembering - always." --Author unknown -- Seen at a monument dealer in West Union, IA ==== INPCRP Mailing List ==== This list is for discussion of topics related to the Indiana Pioneer Cemeteries Restoration Project only. Please do not send genealogical queries through this list. The surname and geographic Mailing Lists on Rootsweb at http://lists.rootsweb.com are a better venue. Thank you. ________________________________________________________________________ Check out AOL.com today. Breaking news, video search, pictures, email and IM. All on demand. Always Free.