Carrying Out a Graveyard Survey - Guidelines



Home


Introduction

What to Record

Some Tips

Record Sheets

Drawing a Plan

Photography

Database

Worn Stones



What to Record

The simplest survey would involve recording just a numbered list of the monumental inscriptions. This would be of benefit mostly to the genealogists.

The list becomes much more useful if the gravestone numbers are added to some sort of plan, so that someone visiting the graveyard with a copy of the survey and plan could find any stone of interest. The plan could take the form of anything from a simple sketch to a fully detailed survey, depending on the resources and skills available to the group.

If time and resources permit, the details of each stone (dimensions, materials, style of stone, inscription and any carving, etc.) can be recorded. The survey then becomes a complete record of the state of the graveyard at the time of recording and a useful historical document.

A photograph of each stone helps to show the stones in context and any details not covered by the written record.

The whole resource becomes much more accessible if it is copied into a computer database from which the data can be processed in a variety of ways - searches can be made, an index of surnames produced, and the data can be transformed into web pages accessible worldwide via the internet.


Page last updated 28th May, 2012
Please contact us if you have any comments about this page or if you have any problems with it.

Home