A cemetery research trip can be a revealing experience, especially if you prepare yourself in advance. You first need to know where to look for your ancestors and relatives, and if you can't find them, you need to know where to go for help. In this week's "Along Those Lines . . ." let's discuss some techniques for locating people in cemeteries.

A Methodical Approach
First of all, make certain you're looking in the right cemetery. It is not uncommon to make the mistake of looking for your ancestor in the wrong place. Family stories may indicate that a person is buried in one place while, in fact, he or she is buried elsewhere. This is the reason many people hit brick walls in their cemetery research. In order to avoid these pitfalls, here are some tips that may help you locate your ancestors and the cemetery.

A death certificate can be an important clue in locating the correct cemetery in which your ancestor was buried. Bear in mind that death certificates are a more recent type of documentation, usually not kept until the late-nineteenth or early-twentieth century. If you are fortunate enough to have obtained a copy of the death certificate, there should be an indication as to the method and/or place of interment.

In the absence of a death certificate, look for obituaries that might indicate the cemetery in which interment took place. The obituary may also include the names of the funeral parlor, and you may therefore be able to obtain information and records from this establishment.

Next, determine who has administrative responsibility for cemeteries in the geographical area in which you are conducting your research. Start with the county courthouse and try to find out who in that locality is responsible for processing burial permits. Next, make contact in a specific locality with the responsible agency or person. This entity should be able to tell you whether it has the records concerning burials for the area and how far back in time the records go. My experience has been that, in some localities, there is a department of cemeteries or other agency that maintains the records. Records concerning the burial of a specific person may be on file and may contain cemetery lot information, a death certificate, a burial permit, and even a copy of an obituary.

We've all been to cemeteries where there are unmarked graves or where tombstones have been damaged or destroyed. In those cases, it is impossible to tell who is buried where. It is therefore important that you make contact with the responsible agency or person to determine where specific people are buried. Make an appointment to visit those responsible in person and to meet them face-to-face. By doing so, you will have the opportunity to perhaps review the materials in an ancestor's file. You can also find out who purchased the cemetery lot and when. In addition, the agency may have a map of the county showing all cemetery locations, or a map of the cemetery on which someone can mark the locations of specific people's burial plots. This can make it easier for you to locate graves. In some cases, I've even had a representative meet me and walk the cemetery with me, taking me directly to graves I never would have found on my own.

If the agency does not have responsibility for specific burial grounds, such as those of churches and private burial grounds, those working there can most likely provide you with contact names and addresses of sextons or other responsible persons. These people can help you locate burial plots in their cemeteries.

Another resource that may possibly be of help may be a stonemason. Often, stone cutting is a family operation, and a particular stonecutter may have been in business for several generations. In a smaller municipality, it may be easy to locate the stonemason responsible for creating the tombstones for your ancestors. The stonemason's records may provide you with the location of the cemetery and, in some cases, the specific location the cemetery plot.

Religious institutions may also have records of their members, including information concerning death and place of burial. If interment took place in a churchyard, there may be records, notes, and even maps showing the place of burial.

Organization Is the Key
Professional genealogical researchers use the approaches described above to locate burial sites. Most often, they conduct advance interviews before they even travel to the locale. This approach saves a great deal of time and effort on-site, and is a wise way for all of us to approach our cemetery research.

Happy Hunting!

George

Genealogy Cruise 2001: A Family History Odyssey
Are you looking for the perfect winter getaway? Join George and others on Genealogy Cruise 2001: A Family History Odyssey! We're headed on a cruise from Tampa Bay to Key West and back on February 1-4, 2001. Along the line, we'll enjoy the pleasure of oceangoing sailing and have five on-board genealogy workshops. There will also be lots of time in Key West for shopping, touring the famous cemetery, visiting Hemingway House and Audubon House and more. For complete information, visit the Web site. Space is limited and the ship is filling up fast!

George G. Morgan is a proud member of the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors, Inc. (ISFHWE). He would like to hear from you at atl@ahaseminars.com, but due to the volume of e-mail received, he is unable to answer every e-mail message received. Please note that he cannot assist you with your individual research. Visit George's Web site for information about speaking engagements. George is also the author of The Genealogy Forum on America Online, which is available in the Ancestry E-Store.

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