Publications of Interest
Those written by our members are in bold.
Baugher, Sherene, and Richard F. Veit
2020 Advances in Gravestone and Cemetery Studies in the United States and the Commonwealth of Nations. In The Routledge Handbook of Global Historical Archaeology, edited by C. Orser, A. Zarankin, P. Funari, S. Lawrence, and J. Symonds, pp: 553–72. Routledge, London.
2014 The Archaeology of American Cemeteries and Gravemarkers. Gainesville: University Press of Florida.
2013 John Zuricher, Stone Cutter, and His Imprint on the Religious Landscape of Colonial New York. In Tales of Gotham, Historical Archaeology, Ethnohistory and Microhistory of New York City, edited by M. Janowitz and D. Dallal, pp: 225–247. Springer, New York.
Baugher, Sherene, and Frederick A. Winter
1983 Early American Gravestones: Archaeological Perspectives on Three Cemeteries of Old New York. Archaeology 36 (5): 46–53.
Blachowicz, James
2006 From Slate to Marble 1770-1870: Gravestone Carving Traditions in Eastern Massachusetts. First Edition. Graver Press, Evanston, Illinois.
Chase, Theodore, and Laurel K. Gabel
1997 Gravestone Chronicles II: More Eighteenth-Century New England Carvers and an Exploration of Gravestone Heraldica. First Edition. New England Historic, Boston.
Dethlefsen, Edwin, and James Deetz
1966 Death’s Heads, Cherubs, and Willow Trees: Experimental Archaeology in Colonial Cemeteries. American Antiquity 31 (4): 502–10.
Dexter, Mary L.
2020 On the Trail of Coffin Man: Researching 19th Century Gravestone Carvers of Central New York State. Self-published, Cortland, New York.
Dietlin, Patt
2020 A Brief Encounter in the Backbone Ridge. The Backbone, a publication of the Backbone Ridge History Group, December 2020: 10-14.
2019 Are We Losing Our Marbles? The Backbone, a publication of the Backbone Ridge History Group, September 2019:1-5
Forbes, Harriette Merrifield Gillon, Edmund
1981 Early New England Gravestone Rubbings. Dover, New York.
Gilson, Thomas E., and William Gilson
2012 Carved in Stone: The Artistry of Early New England Gravestones. Illustrated Edition. Wesleyan University Press, Middletown, Connecticut.
Ludwig, Allen
2000 Graven Images: New England Stonecarving and Its Symbols, 1650–1815. First edition. Wesleyan University Press, Middletown, Connecticut.
Pabst, Tina
2011 Meet Me in Heaven. Higginson Book Company, Salem, Massachusetts.
Utter, Tina and Dale Utter.
2019 Cleaning Gravestones. The Backbone, a publication of the Backbone Ridge History Group, December 2019: 6-7.
Gravestone Cleaning and Repair
In cleaning and repairing historic gravestones, it is important to Do No Harm. Cleaning, resetting, and repairing cemetery markers using harmful methods and cleaning products can cause permanent damage to the stone. Cleaning can often be done simply with water and a soft brush. Repair projects can fail and cause safety issues if not done properly. We recommend consulting with a professionally trained gravestone restoration specialist prior to undertaking any major repairs. For more information, the guides below were developed by the National Park Service and provide useful information about gravestone cleaning, resetting and repairs:
Preserving Grave Markers in Historic Cemeteries
www.nps.gov/tps/how-to-preserve/preservedocs/preservation-briefs/48Preserve-Brief-GraveMarkers.pdf
Best Practice Recommendations for Cleaning Government Issued Headstones
www.ncptt.nps.gov/blog/best-practice-recommendations-for-cleaning-government-issued-marble-headstones
WATCH Via YouTube!
I Break for Old Graveyards
Our member, Mary Dexter’s 2018 talk at the Cortland County Historical Society: I Break for Old Graveyards
Coffin Man and his Apprentices
Mary Dexter’s 2015 presentation to the McGraw Historical Societ: Coffin Man and his Apprentices
Websites of Interest:
- A Grave Interest
- Association of Gravestone Studies
- Atlas Preservation
- Cemetery Conservators for United Standards
- Cemetery Travel
- Connecticut Gravestone Network
- Find-A-Grave
- Gravestone Geek
- Gravestones and Taphophilia
- Saving Graves
- Stone Quarries and Beyond
- The Cemetery Traveler
- The Farber Collection of Gravestone Rubbings
- Tomes in Progress