I am going to the Martin Springs cemetery today. I should get there about 12 noon. If anyone that knows how to take letters off of a headstone could tell me how to do it, I would appreciate it. The letters are concave, not convex. Thanks. Jim Rollins ____________________________________________________________________________________ Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ

It is way too late now, but you can rub charcoal over them and that works great and it doesn't harm the marker. Chalk works too and shaving cream, but I am not sure it is good for the marker. On Sat, Mar 22, 2008 at 11:20 AM, jim rollins <rebelman42003@yahoo.com> wrote: > I am going to the Martin Springs cemetery today. I should get there about > 12 noon. If anyone that knows how to take letters off of a headstone could > tell me how to do it, I would appreciate it. The letters are concave, not > convex. Thanks. Jim Rollins > > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > Be a better friend, newshound, and > know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. > http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > PLEASE NOTE: This list is for queries and replies, comments, > requests for help, and other genealogical related information > that is of interest to researchers having a connection or a > possible connection to Marion County, Tennessee. There is no > soliciting or advertising of any item or service for sale allowed. > Betty McBee - list administrator-- macbetty2@peoplepc.com > Marion County Web Site: http://www.rootsweb.com/~tnmario2/ > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > TNMARION-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

Just earlier today I attended a workshop in which one of state archivists spoke the first two hours. One of the ladies attending spoke of cleaning up a cemetery and the teenagers had brought shaving cream and were squirting the tombstones to make them easier to read. Several ladies just sat there shaking their heads. I was also aware this is not the best thing to do. The archivist said if you just squirt/spray the letters with water and a very soft bristle brush you will get as good as you can get! It seems some of the things like shaving cream and baby powder that we have heard of, does not entirely wash off and the chemicals are very lasting and will ruin the tombstone. Quite recently a friend asked me to go out in the country and bring my digital camera. There was a tombstone out there for a revolutionary soldier who died in 1812. I took some pictures and when I got home and downloaded them, I played with the lighting and a couple of adjustments and could get some letters much much better than what we could see with the eye. I was sort of lucky this time. wanda casker

That is why I use charcoal. It is not as messy as shaving cream and since it is a natural kind of thing it won't hurt the stones at all. It washes off with the first rain and it makes the stones easier to read. I learned about charcoal from a cemetery sextant. Barbara On Sat, Mar 22, 2008 at 7:11 PM, <wmc2310@ftc-i.net> wrote: > > Just earlier today I attended a workshop in which one of state archivists > spoke the first two hours. > One of the ladies attending spoke of cleaning up a cemetery and the > teenagers > had brought shaving cream and were squirting the tombstones to make them > easier to read. Several ladies just sat there shaking their heads. I > was > also aware this is not the best thing to do. The archivist said if you > just > squirt/spray the letters with water and a very > soft bristle brush you will get as good as you can get! It seems some of > the > things like shaving > cream and baby powder that we have heard of, does not entirely wash off > and > the chemicals are > very lasting and will ruin the tombstone. > > Quite recently a friend asked me to go out in the country and bring my > digital > camera. There was a tombstone out there for a revolutionary soldier who > died > in 1812. I took some pictures and > when I got home and downloaded them, I played with the lighting and a > couple > of adjustments and could get some letters much much better than what we > could > see with the eye. I was sort of lucky this time. > > wanda casker > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > PLEASE NOTE: This list is for queries and replies, comments, > requests for help, and other genealogical related information > that is of interest to researchers having a connection or a > possible connection to Marion County, Tennessee. There is no > soliciting or advertising of any item or service for sale allowed. > Betty McBee - list administrator-- macbetty2@peoplepc.com > Marion County Web Site: http://www.rootsweb.com/~tnmario2/ > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > TNMARION-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >