More than a cemetery survey . . .

Some months ago, I wrote about an in-depth history of the cemeteries of Logansport, Louisiana, published by two women of advanced age. Most intriguing was the research behind the book -- more than a cemetery survey, the ladies endeavored to research the families of those buried. This week, an article on WBIR.com, "The history in East Tennessee cemeteries is well-documented thanks to Robert McGinnis," tells the story (along with a video of the interview) of a Knox County, Tennesse man who has documented the cemeteries of 16 East and Middle Tennessee counties, and like the ladies of Logansport, provides research and even documentation on many of those buried. 

An ambitious project it was:

"He's taken all this information and packed it into 34 books that not only tell you which grave is, where and who it belongs to, but it goes one step further. "We add in information like wills, birth certificates, information on deaths, obituaries, marriage records. Fill it out a little bit, give it more of a life story."

What the article did not tell us is where the books could be accessed or which counties had been surveyed, so I did a little research and queried the author. I learned that only four of the 16 counties surveyed have actually been published in book form: Knox, Anderson, Grainger, and Blount. Each county is a multi-volume set, and some volumes are not yet complete. As for accessing what has been published, you can check local libraries for the counties completed. I also found some 17 of the publications under the author's name in the Library Catalog of Family History Library. Some of the information (probably not the complete histories), especially for Knox County, is online.

Students in the Graveyard - what can it mean to you?

Here's a new twist on cemetery research -- it may be that others have done some research on your family on assignment with local colleges. In his article, "Students in the Graveyard," Larry Naukam reports on what you might find, and most interesting of all . . . what the student may have found in their pursuit.

South Dakota 1940s era cemetery records online

As noted in a recent article on Keoland TV, the South Dakota State Historical Society has put a searchable index to a database of cemetery records online.

A 1940s-era collection of cemetery records is in the archives at the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre and is a popular research tool for genealogists. Staff and volunteers have entered information from the records into a database during the past several years. The information is from a Works Progress Administration effort known as the Graves Registration Project. The inventory included the name of the deceased, the grave, lot, block and section number, date of death, age at death, gender and whether or not the person was a veteran. To check out the online database, go to http://apps.sd.gov/applications/DT58Cemetery/.