Nationwide Gravesite Locator

"Search for burial locations of veterans and their family members in VA National Cemeteries, state veterans cemeteries, various other military and Department of Interior cemeteries, and for veterans buried in private cemeteries when the grave is marked with a government grave marker.

The Nationwide Gravesite Locator includes burial records from many sources. These sources provide varied data; some searches may contain less information than others. Information on veterans buried in private cemeteries was collected for the purpose of furnishing government grave markers, and we do not have information available for burials prior to 1997."

Nationwide Gravesite Locator

Be sure to visit Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Links and Chat.

While there stop into Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Chat.

A Genealogy Tool – The Graving Kit

The following was published previously in Looking 4 Kin Newsletter by fishing ( a chatter in Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Chat)

A Genealogy Tool – The Graving Kit

I am no longer quite sure how the idea of developing a Graving Kit became a reality. It started off as a bit of a joke, but the idea was based on some previous experiences and the knowledge that on the day that the idea moved past the talking stage into an actual kit, four of us were just starting out to visit several cemeteries.

What is a Graving Kit?

To answer that, think about how many cemeteries you have visited and found the individual sites of your kin to be in a condition less than satisfactory. Even if the cemeteries are regularly tended, individual graves usually need some attention. Why not do a little maintenance while you are there?

There are any number of ways you can develop your kit and any number of items that can be included. Here’s what we did. We made up a list of what we thought should be the basic tools, keeping in mind that the kit needed to be portable and practical and then made our first stop at a Thrift Store. What we couldn’t find there we supplemented by a visit to other stores and from home supplies.

Kit Inventory

Packsack, small, well constructed.
Spray bottle(plastic)
Glass/Tile scraper plus spare blades
Trowel, small, pointed
Knife, 4” blade
Grass trimmer (hand size)
Clippers(twigs and small branches)
Brush ( medium bristles)
Whisk broom
Water container
Bleach (mixed weak)
Chalk (different colors)
Hand cleaner
Rags
Measuring Tape
Sketch Book
Pencils


And of course a camera. If you can you should have both a digital and a conventional camera.

There may be some question as to the last 3 items . In some of the older cemeteries, particularly those which are on private property, some of the family plot lines have deteriorated and some of the information on the stones is hard to read due to deterioration. It is good to try and redefine the boundries, make a rough sketch and write in what information is still legible.

One reminder, be careful while doing your cleanup! Weather and time take their toll on all of these sites, you don’t want to accelerate natures processes.

fishing

Be sure to visit Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Links and Chat.

While there stop into Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Chat.

Cemeteries in Stockholm, Sweden

Do you have ancestors in Sweden who may have been buried in Stockholm?

At Sök på gravsatta i Stockholm you can search among around 185,000 graves and around 525,000 buried in Stockholm's 11 general cemeteries.

Don't worry about the foreign sounding name to the site - the above link takes you to the English version.

US Department of Veterans Affairs - Nationwide Graveyard Locator

For those of you that are researching US Veterans ...

Search for burial locations of veterans and their family members in VA National Cemeteries, state veterans cemeteries, various other military and Department of Interior cemeteries, and for veterans buried in private cemeteries when the grave is marked with a government grave marker at Nationwide Graveyard Locator

Findagrave.com

DaClyde - a Guest Columnist on our old newsletter submitted the following some time ago.

"Findagrave.com was started when Jim Tipton found that there wasn't already a website site for helping people find the graves of celebrities. And considering how many people visit the graves of the likes of Marilyn Monroe, Jim Morrison and Rod Serling (ok, maybe tens of thousands of people don't visit the grave of the Twilight Zone's creator), Jim took it upon himself and launched Find A Grave. By popular demand, Find A Grave quickly grew from containing virtual memorials of thousands famous people to include the graves of over 6.4 million humans and animals (with the help of over 100,000 contributors). And what began as a virtual Cemetery Tour of the Stars (theres even a Cemetery Stroll feature), has evolved in to an extremely valuable and versatile resource for genealogists, families and fans alike.

While it does contain cemeteries and graves from the whole globe, currently, the Non-Famous database only offers searches for cemeteries within the United States (but more countries will be searchable in the not-too-distant future). They started by creating a database of every state, county and town from the U.S. Geological Survey's database and listing every cemetery included in the survey. Any cemeteries not included in the USGS surveys (which includes any cemeteries less than 50 square feet, or any cemeteries created after about 1970) can be added by contributors. Each cemetery listing is it's own virtual cemetery. In cases of more complete infomation, the main cemetery page includes a photo of the cemetery gate/sign or a general landscape photo, location (both a map with GPS coordinates as well as the city, county & state) and in some cases a street address or history of the cemetery.

Within the cemeteries, lie the alphabetized listings of those interred. Each listing can include the individual's name, birth date & location, death date & location, personal photo, tombstone photo, family photo, the gravestone inscription, the plot location (section/row/plot), a brief biography and any notes added by the contributor. In keeping with the spirit of a physical cemetery, there is also a place to leave flowers and notes as virtual memorials or tributes to the deceased.

For genealogists, Find A Grave is a great resource as it is like a constantly growing cemetery transcription database, only better. With most transcriptions of any kind, there are multiple points for errors to creep into the work: the original transcriber's interpretation of the inscription, the typist's transcription of the field survey into book, and in some cases, the further transcription of the printed work into an electronic format for the web. With each generation, the researcher is moved further away from the source. The tombstone photos give everyone the chance to see the stones for themselves (keeping in mind the limitations of space and photographic quality of an image that's only 500 or so pixels wide). In addition to the photos, the maps provided can show the cemetery location with a high degree of accuracy that is difficult with written directions of old cemetery surveys. Landmarks can change, buildings added or removed and new streets can make follwing 30 year old directions a challenge. Find A Grave gives you the precise location of the cemetery. To round out the site, Find A Grave also features a very active message board that is frequented by contributors, admins and visitors alike, so any problems or questions relating to the site and records can be addressed by the knowledgable and friendly forum members.

Please note DaClyde is not associated with the above site other than as a contributor."

Be sure to visit Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Links and Chat.

While there stop into Looking 4 Kin Genealogy Chat.

Try a new Ancestry.com Membership! No Credit Card Required