What a very gentle, and genuine explanation for what happened at your library. You are to be commended for your thoughtfulness. Eleanor > Teresa, > First, since I was today's library volunteer, please allow me to apologize > if you felt uncomfortable or unwelcome. As you know, the space is small and > we had 12 visitors in those two hours. Several of them were people who were > not experienced researchers who were looking up their old house. They often > need more help than most people who are doing genealogy. One of the other > visitors was a professional researcher who needed access to the manuscript > collection, which necessitated several trips up and downstairs to hand in > requests to the archivist. So there was a little bit of bedlam this > afternoon. And I gave you the wrong directions twice to the Prospect Hill > Cemetery (blush). Again, I am sorry. > > As far as having heard that there were cemetery records there, what we have > is what you used, the card index of tombstone inscriptions that have been > compiled over a 90-year (more or less) period by avid tombstone hunters, > some of whom are on this list. The card index was created for the > convenience of people who just haven't the time to drive to and stroll > through every small cemetery and burial ground in the county. It is by no > means complete, it is only as good as the researcher who compiled it. > Therefore, unless you've seen the stone yourself, should be considered as a > hint, a piece of the evidence. Naturally, if there was no tombstone, there > is no record in that file. > > If by cemetery records you thought there were interment records, I have > never seen such records in our collection. If we have a lawyer on this list, > perhaps you can correct me but I believe that in New Jersey, cemeteries must > be incorporated and the record of interments is part of the legal records of > the corporation. A large cemetery like Prospect Hill has officers who can > consult records for you. I'm not sure how it works, as I have never had to > do it. Church burial grounds make their records a part of the records of the > church, and as with marriages and baptisms, some churches have them, some do > not. Family and neighborhood burial grounds have no records except notations > in family bibles. > > Another note, the Hunterdon County Historical Society is a private > organization, not a part of county government. All legal records for the > county are found in the County archives and the County Clerks office. The > beginning of its library was the private book and manuscript collection of > Hiram Deats. Among other things, Mr. Deats was an accomplished genealogists > in the first half of the twentieth century. He lived in Flemington and was > primarily interested in Flemington, Kingwood, Amwell and Delaware families. > His collection is not even, it is especially lacking in areas north of > Flemington. Like all personal collections, it often reflects his personal > interests and prejudices. The library has outgrown its space several times > and the trustees are currently looking to expand their space again. > > Again, let me apologize if you were not made to feel welcome. As volunteers, > we all try to help visitors find what they are looking for. And > unfortunately, we aren't always successful. > > Kathleen Schreiner > > > > > > ==== NJHUNTER Mailing List ==== > Visit the Updated Hunterdon County GenWeb page at: > http://www.rootsweb.com/~njhunter > > ============================== > You can manage your RootsWeb-Review subscription from > http://newsletters.rootsweb.com/ > > >