The chalk that I use can be brushed off with my hand. Most of it I blow off before I leave. It most definitely washes off with the 1st rain. In case you haven't noticed, they don't "make" things like they used to. Maybe when I was a kid, if I had chalked a tombstone, it might possibly be there to this day..But get real...In this day & time quality products are not to be found..My granddaughter draws on the concrete 1 day, and practically by that afternoon it has mostly disappeared. I have no intention of doing anything to damage a tombstone. But from my experiences, the most harmful thing I have run across is the person who mows the cemeteries. The lawnmower seems to me to be the "worst enemy" of the tombstone. My dad was a World War II veteran, and he has a plaque at the foot of his grave. Thanks to the lawnmower man, the corner is scraped off & one letter of the inscription is pretty much erased. Obviously the lawn mower just drives over it, and the blades sand it down. Did you find anything online on line saying..DO NOT MOW A TOMBSTONE!! OVER TIME IT WILL EAT AWAY THE EMBOSSED INSCRIPTION!! I don't think my chalk could ever do that kind of damage. It doesn't even stick to paper that long. Peggy, you are right about still not knowing who is in the grave without digging them up..But, when you have a grave & you know almost 100% sure who is buried there, but can't find proof..If the rod did indeed say there was a male buried around the wife's tombstone, then you would hopefully believe it to be her husband. In my case there is no other tombstones close to her. And if it said there was only a female, then I would have to assume that he is not buried with her. I was indeed told that the only way I would ever know for sure would be to dig up the grave & have a DNA test done..but I don't really think I want to disturb her gravesite. She has been there over 100 years, and hopefully she will be there another 100..although her stone is tilting & appears to be getting ready to topple over. I have been trying to find out if I am allowed to try & reset it.. No one seems to know if I can go in with a shovel & start digging..Most assume I would get arrested..If I do nothin! g, it is definitely going to probably fall over & break..I sure don't want that to happen...Oh yeah, glad you got a good laugh out of it..But honestly, there has been so much vandalism of graves around here lately..I try not to hang around them for a very long period of time. Don't want to look too suspicious.. Later...Joan Broach Morris

I would say, just stay away from the oil based stuff which may have been what was used eons ago to make the chalk stick. Elaine Suhre ----- Original Message ----- From: "JOAN MORRIS" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, September 04, 2004 11:52 AM Subject: [TNHENRY] HAZARDS TO TOMBSTONES > The chalk that I use can be brushed off with my hand. Most of it I blow off before I leave. It most definitely washes off with the 1st rain. In case you haven't noticed, they don't "make" things like they used to. Maybe when I was a kid, if I had chalked a tombstone, it might possibly be there to this day..But get real...In this day & time quality products are not to be found..My granddaughter draws on the concrete 1 day, and practically by that afternoon it has mostly disappeared. > > I have no intention of doing anything to damage a tombstone. But from my experiences, the most harmful thing I have run across is the person who mows the cemeteries. The lawnmower seems to me to be the "worst enemy" of the tombstone. My dad was a World War II veteran, and he has a plaque at the foot of his grave. Thanks to the lawnmower man, the corner is scraped off & one letter of the inscription is pretty much erased. Obviously the lawn mower just drives over it, and the blades sand it down. Did you find anything online on line saying..DO NOT MOW A TOMBSTONE!! OVER TIME IT WILL EAT AWAY THE EMBOSSED INSCRIPTION!! I don't think my chalk could ever do that kind of damage. It doesn't even stick to paper that long. > > Peggy, you are right about still not knowing who is in the grave without digging them up..But, when you have a grave & you know almost 100% sure who is buried there, but can't find proof..If the rod did indeed say there was a male buried around the wife's tombstone, then you would hopefully believe it to be her husband. In my case there is no other tombstones close to her. And if it said there was only a female, then I would have to assume that he is not buried with her. I was indeed told that the only way I would ever know for sure would be to dig up the grave & have a DNA test done..but I don't really think I want to disturb her gravesite. She has been there over 100 years, and hopefully she will be there another 100..although her stone is tilting & appears to be getting ready to topple over. I have been trying to find out if I am allowed to try & reset it.. No one seems to know if I can go in with a shovel & start digging..Most assume I would get arrested..If I do nothin! > g, it is definitely going to probably fall over & break..I sure don't want that to happen...Oh yeah, glad you got a good laugh out of it..But honestly, there has been so much vandalism of graves around here lately..I try not to hang around them for a very long period of time. Don't want to look too suspicious.. > > Later...Joan Broach Morris > > > > ==== TNHENRY Mailing List ==== > If you wish to unsubscribe from the Henry Co., TN Mailing List, send only the word > UNSUBSCRIBE to [email protected] or if you are on the Digest List to > [email protected] > > ============================== > Gain access to over two billion names including the new Immigration > Collection with an Ancestry.com free trial. Click to learn more. > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=4930&sourceid=1237 >