Reading all of these success stories that have to do with information on headstones and such that can later be used as "proof" for genealogy purposes reminds me that it's something to keep in mind as we all do our own "estate planning"! Yes, it may sound lovely to have one's ashes scattered over a flowered hillside or at sea, but if that's what you choose as your final resting place, make sure there is SOME sort of marker left someplace that will remind those who come after of the basic "begat" details of your life as well (for we are surely not the "be all and end all" of all genealogy research in our various families, and thus it could very well be that some day, someone will be trying to pick up where we left off researching our various lines!)! Case in point (yes, I know personally of what I speak here...) -- the ashes of both my maternal grandparents were scattered over the beachfront property they owned and loved in life. So no headstone (and in fact, that property isn't even in our family anymore...and I highly doubt the current owners even know that my grandparents are still "there" either, LOL!!)! In their case however, fortunately there are also stained glass windows in the church they attended that are "in memory" of them, and thus have both their names, plus dates of birth and death, on them, actually done in stained glass as well -- which is ALMOST as good, I suppose (and really, not all THAT different from a headstone out in the church graveyard...prettier, of course, tho!). SO -- do your descendants a favor and just make sure that there is SOMETHING left behind that will enable them to "find" you!! :-) Take care. Kathy ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Kathryn P.B. Fenton Virginia Beach, VA (Descendant of Alden/Mullins, Brewster, Doty, Edward Fuller, Hopkins, Howland/Tilley, Rogers, Samson, and Standish) http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/f/e/n/K-Fenton/index.html Recycle yourself! Tell someone you want to be an organ and tissue donor! http://save7lives.org ----- Original Message ----- From: "Linda Smith" <smit8698@bellsouth.net> To: <mayflower@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, June 25, 2008 2:47 PM Subject: Re: [MFLR] Use of Tombstone Photos to Prove Ancestry? > My 3great grandmother's tombstone reads: > > Sarah Bemis > wife of > John Kingsbury > born in Spencer, Mass > March 24, 1803 > DIED > Dec 5, 1880 > > Thus I was able to match the birthdate on the gravestone to the VR of > Spencer MA and determine that she was the daughter of Amasa Bemis and > Nancy Dunbar. A little further research led to the discovery that Nancy > Dunbar was a Richard Warren Descendant, which at the time was a total > surprise to me. > > Just a suggestion: Don't forget to check and see if there are any > cemetery records around, once you find the gravestone. Sarah was buried > in Elmira NY at Woodlawn, and they have an OLD ledger with all the > burials in it at a nearby library. That book has a listing next to the > names for parents. Sure enough, hers were listed as Amasa and Nancy > Bemis. > > Ernest Everett Blevins wrote: >> Sometimes they are the only proof. I have used them for proofs in many >> organizations but usually they are frosting on the cake and submitted to >> add >> to the proof and have the information stored somewhere. I've also been >> accused in documentation that I over document typically using multiple >> sources for my proofs. >> >> Annie Grey Soule, my great grandmother, acutally has on her stone "9th in >> decent from pilgram George Soule." She is burried in C harleston, South >> Carolina. >> Ernie >> On Tue, Jun 24, 2008 at 4:17 PM, <Scrapcat2@aol.com> wrote: >> >> >>> Does the Mayflower Society Historians permit the use of tombstone photos >>> to >>> show birth/death dates of Mayflower descendants in the application form? >>> Or >>> are birth certificates the only acceptable form of "proof". >>> >>> Thank you, >>> Carol from Arizona >>> >>> >>> >>> **************Gas prices getting you down? Search AOL Autos for >>> fuel-efficient used cars. ( >>> http://autos.aol.com/used?ncid=aolaut00050000000007) >>> Frequently-asked questions may often be answered by visiting the FAQ >>> page >>> for this list at: http://www.craigrich.net/mayfaq.htm >>> ------------------------------- >>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >>> MAYFLOWER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >>> quotes in the subject and the body of the message >>> >>> >> >> >> >> > Frequently-asked questions may often be answered by visiting the FAQ page > for this list at: http://www.craigrich.net/mayfaq.htm > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > MAYFLOWER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message