Thursday, August 11, 2016

Who owns the cemetery?

I recently posted on my Small Simple Things of Life blog about a recent visit to a cemetery where many of my mother's relatives are buried (Going Back).  As a child I visited family cemeteries at least once each year, sometimes more.  Today, thankfully, all are still well maintained by loving community members; I try to visit at least every few years and am grateful for Google maps to point me along the way as well as those loving souls that have put up easy to see signs and markers to follow when you get off the main road. I have lamented over relatives from the ex's side of the family that are buried in a small town where the cemetery is cared for by the city, but there are no family members to come and check on the graves from time to time. 

The Texas Historical Commission's blog has featured a short article on cemeteries titled Cemetery Queries. The article gives a brief description of how small cemeteries formed and what can happen after they are abandoned or are no longer in the ownership of the original land owner. Cemeteries don't qualify for maintenance funding, but they can qualify for restoration and educational project grant monies. Cemeteries play a very important role in preserving our past for future generations to understand.