Does not appear to be a big deal. Seems only to protect private land owner. The private land owner is the go to person. Seems a deal could always be cut with the land owner for ingress and egress to his land for conducting reasonalbe research. I don't know the background of the need, but someone has obviously complained that people are entering private property without authority to do so. Included is a provision for chancery court intercession of both parties as well, should it come to no reasonalbe agreement. HB 1354 passed on 5/2. Comp. SB 1804 set for 5/7. Chuck Owen Laredo, Texas chxowen@stx.rr.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "preston gilmore" <gildent@msn.com> To: <tndickso@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2007 5:55 AM Subject: [TNDICKSO] Cemetery law changes I noticed that Tony included Doug Jackson and John Tidwell's email address in his posting. I am going to send them each an email asking them to vote against this monday. I hope you all do too!!! Maybe they will read their emails before voting! Caroline ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to TNDICKSO-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

A few years ago, my husband and I were spending a week at one of Tennessee's state parks. One day, we were out riding around the area, just following one of the many dirt roads. Once such road came to a dead end---at a small cemetery. We hadn't seen a house (or another human being) in hours. To tell the truth, we didn't know if we were still in Overton County! Now, this dirt road wasn't on my map. I wasn't sure I could ever find my way back to this cemetery. If this law is passed, I could not have gotten out and gone for a walk through this very old cemetery! (There were no houses anywhere around and I wasn't sure what county I was in.) I would have had to go to the 3 county seats in that area to try to find out where that cemetery was located and who owned the property to gain permission to look at old tombstones----but I still wasn't "eligible" because I didn't have permission from a descendant---and didn't even know who might be buried there! This wasn't a problem that day. I did get out to look at tombstones. Imagine my surprise when I happened up on the tombstones of my step-mother's grandparents! Her mother was orphaned as a very young child and didn't know where her parents were buried----she'd died thinking they were in unmarked graves in the same church cemetery she's buried in. Genealogists, researchers, and historians are NOT going to cemeteries to damage anything----we go to perserve! Should I mention the cemetery in Montgomery County were a woman went to visit graves of her ancestors---and found that the property owner was allowing pigs to roam the cemetery! (He'd also removed many of the tombstones and had them piled up under a corn crib.) There are already laws in place to protect the property owner from needless trespassing, vandalism or destruction to his/her property. Where are the laws protecting the cemeteries--and the preservation of them--after the family dies out? Who is going to be able to enter the property to verify the preservation of such cemeteries after the family has died out? Sandy Ellis

Part of the summary to the House bill: "This bill requires owners and occupants of land where cemeteries and graves are located to grant access to the family members, descendants, and close friends of persons who are buried in such land and to genealogical researchers ("eligible persons") in order to visit and maintain graves, make burials, and conduct genealogical research. In order for a friend of a deceased person, of the family, or of a descendant or persons engaging in genealogical research to exercise the right of ingress and egress to a cemetery or to graves on private property as eligible persons, the friend or researcher must have written designation as such by a descendant or other member of the family of the deceased. This bill requires any eligible person to provide reasonable advance notice to the landowner or occupant before entering the land. This bill further specifies that entry upon the private property of another for accessing a cemetery or graves must only occur at a reasonable time, under reasonable circumstances, and in a reasonable manner. This bill authorizes landowners to designate access routes to cemeteries and graves on such persons' land." Chuck Owen Laredo, Texas chxowen@stx.rr.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Chuck Owen" <chxowen@stx.rr.com> To: <tndickso@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2007 6:27 AM Subject: Re: [TNDICKSO] Cemetery law changes Does not appear to be a big deal. Seems only to protect private land owner. The private land owner is the go to person. Seems a deal could always be cut with the land owner for ingress and egress to his land for conducting reasonalbe research. I don't know the background of the need, but someone has obviously complained that people are entering private property without authority to do so. Included is a provision for chancery court intercession of both parties as well, should it come to no reasonalbe agreement. HB 1354 passed on 5/2. Comp. SB 1804 set for 5/7. Chuck Owen Laredo, Texas chxowen@stx.rr.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "preston gilmore" <gildent@msn.com> To: <tndickso@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2007 5:55 AM Subject: [TNDICKSO] Cemetery law changes I noticed that Tony included Doug Jackson and John Tidwell's email address in his posting. I am going to send them each an email asking them to vote against this monday. I hope you all do too!!! Maybe they will read their emails before voting! Caroline ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to TNDICKSO-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to TNDICKSO-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message