EXPERT GENEALOGY Editor: Jeannette Holland Austin Series: Field Trips Subject: Cemeteries, Funeral Homes. Topography Date: December 7, 1998 Did you ancestor manage to avoid the census-taker, never filed his deeds, or anything in the county where he resided? Whether he is guilty, or the records are lost, the problem is the same. Where in the world was he? Here are some suggestions on how to help piece together the puzzle of people whose records you can't find. A good old-fashioned field trip to the small town, or countryside where they resided, can provide some unexpected clues. I have found old family cemeteries, noticed sinking soil and dug down to find inscribed tombstones! Even found old broken slate markers propped up in the woods, in barns, and even broken headstones tangled up in briars in woods. Old church cemeteries still remain in rural communities, even on wooded sites. Vandals, or sextons might throw broken stones in nearby woods or fields. Cemetery Visits. Field trips to cemeteries is one of the finest methods of learning unexpected information. For one, the arrangement of the family plot can be quite informative. Typically, the parents and their minor children are together in the same geographical location. Nearby, one frequently locates married daughters and their children. This is why it is so very important to sketch the plot and adjoining plots. I pay particular notice to all markers, including lining up all head markers to foot marker. Initials of the person are generally found on the foot marker. Then, I pace the feet between each grave to try and determine if an unmarked grave exists. For example, if the family buried 2 feet apart in their plot, then one expects all gave to be consistent. This applies to family graveyards found on old farms or plantations, local church cemeteries, etc. If there is an unmarked hump, or sunken place, I am interested. Social customs of an area must be considered. Virginia, for example, beginning with Jamestown in 1609, buried their colonials inside local parishes, so familiarity with history is important. Later, by the 19th century, they were buried on family plantations, and by the 19th century, in church graveyards. Few Colonial graves are intact. Their preservation was instituted by historical societies who restored or replaced markers. The old fashioned slate markers break and fall to the ground, get buried under the soil. The inscriptions on cement slabs become almost impossible to decipher. A good example of this is the coastal town of Frederica, in Glynn Co., Georgia. This beautifully restored site of avenues pinpoints each house's 18th century foundation. Yet, Gen. Oglethorpe's rangers and townspeople sleep under huge sprawling live-oaks which only protect the cement slabs, not inscriptions. The DAR tries to locate Revolutionary War Soldier's graves, and mark them. Sometimes the marker contains a list of several names known to have been residents of the county, without any indication of where they lived. The best of attempts do not guarantee accuracy, as such markers do contain errors in birth and death dates. Remember, they get the information from a member's application, which may be gaping with errors. The best, most visible markers began in the early 1800's. Even so, inscriptions must be read with the "fingers", if at all. What I do is trace my fingers in the indentions, and try to determine the most likely name. Others, use paper, coloring over the indentions with pencil. The burials in county cemeteries can date as far back in time as the formation of that county. Usually, there is a Sexton who cares for the cemetery. And, you can write him for information, but don't expect any information other than what is on the tombstone. They don't have an office, like funeral directors. Funeral Directors, of course, have all the necessary genealogical data, such as the same information as contained on the death certificate, miscellaneous family information, name of the deceased's insurance company, and even financial records. But are they still in business? To find addresses of possible funeral homes which may still have informatiooon, see the American Blue Book of Funeral Directors, which was published in New York the National Funeral Director's Association. To find anything along these lines, I believe in field trips. Funeral Directors know whose business they replaced, town people remember names of old funeral homes, and the l andscape itself, what with local cemeteries, county, private, church, help formulate a pattern for further research. ====================== BOOKS for SALE ====================== 3515. WHEN YOUR OX IS IN THE DITCH. Genealogical How-to Letters by Vera McDowell. 161 pp., paperback (1995).1997. $19.95. The first how-to book in genealogy written as a series of letters. Ms. McDowell's common sense approach emphasizes problem solving; thus all her lettersbear the unstated refrain: when your ox is in the ditch, i. e.,when you are stuck, here's what you do! ORDER FROM - Jeannette H. Austin GENEALOGY BOOKS 175 Thornton Drive Fayetteville, GA 30214 1-800-899-9524 Local 770-719-1754 Fax 770-719-8699 Order online - http://www.genealogy-books.com/order.htm ACCEPT VISA, MASTERCARD ===================================== EXPERT GENEALOGY is sponsored by GENEALOGY BOOKS and may be freely re-distributed or published. ===================================== === ON THE HOMEPAGE === http://www.genealogy-books.com/ 1. Online Bible Records 2. Genealogy Events Calendar (interactive, you may post events such as reunions, workshops, etc.) 3. More than 1200 genealogy books, cds and disks for sale. Will upload or mail. ======================================= == NOW ONLINE === Can't find a book? 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