The History Hare Has Pneumonia

We apologies to all Graveyard Rabbit Online Journal readers, there will be no hare of the history that bit you this week.

The History Hare, aka the footnoteMaven, is in bed with pneumonia. Catch me on my next rotation, I make so much more sense when I don't have a fever.

Meet Susan Petersen, Author of "Nothing But Tombstones"

The sixty ninth in a series

featuring a member of

The Graveyard Rabbit Association

SUSAN PETERSON

Nothing But Tombstones

As a youngster, I always tagged along with my Mom when she decorated graves at the cemetery in our small town. I never quite understood the point of setting out flowers for dead people, but I didn’t mind walking around and looking at the tombstones.

While in college, I took a photography class and decided that one of my projects would be on the art and sculpture in Wyuka Cemetery and Calvary Cemetery, located across the street from one another in Lincoln, Nebraska. One of my favorite shots was of a large angel with a missing hand.

The idea of photographing tombstones didn’t really click with me until five or six years ago when I discovered FindAGrave.com and wanted to document my family’s tombstones. That was when I discovered my great great grandparents, William Kelly and Mary Casey Kelly, were buried at Calvary Cemetery. This discovery was my first link taking me back another generation. That’s why this is my favorite tombstone. What I found to be interesting is that their plot is just a few feet from that large angel with the missing hand that I had photographed about 35 years earlier. I often wonder how many times I walked past the Kelly plot not realizing so many of my family members were buried there.

Flash forward to the present. I have become totally passionate about photographing tombstones and visiting cemeteries. It’s crazy, but it’s like I get this adrenalin rush every time I even drive by one! I always have a camera in the car. My goal is to photograph every tombstone at Greenwood Memorial Cemetery in Greenwood, Nebraska, where many of my family and a lot of their friends are buried.

On Monday mornings, my coworkers will often ask about my weekend and my usual response is, “Great – I hung out with the dead relatives.” Yes, they think I’m crazy, except for the fellow who sits next to me who has been doing genealogy for 60 years.


I joined the Graveyard Rabbits because I enjoy learning from other people and sharing information. I subscribe to just about all of the GYR member blogs and look forward to seeing their photographs of tombstones and cemeteries. I want to learn more about symbolism and iconography of tombstones. From reading the blogs, I learned what one of the symbols on the Kelly tombstone is. I had entirely too many tombstone photos to only post photographs on the Geneabloggers’ Tombstone Tuesdays, so I started another blog, Nothing But Tombstones, earlier this month so I can post my photographs and inscriptions as frequently as I have time to do so.


Advice for GYR wannabes? Wear sensible shoes, socks, and keep your eyes on the ground! And take a long a friend who can identify poison ivy!

New Article on the GYR Online Journal

This week in our Graveyard Guru column Stephanie brings us an article on the burial mound of the Mississippians. Hop on over to the GYR Online Journal to read this interesting article.

New Article on the GYR Online Journal

This week in our Digging for Answers column Randy tackles this question:

Question: Joanie asks: What do gravestones or grave markers cost these days? How can I comparison shop?


Answer: One of the frustrating things about having to deal with the passing of a loved one, especially if it happens unexpectedly...Hop on over the the GYR Online Journal to read the rest of his answer.

Another GYR OJ Update

Thank you to those that have volunteered to author an article for our GYR Online Journal. We still need a few more. Here is what is available:


• The Rabbit’s Tale - A little of this, a little of that - 3 of 4 available
5/16, 8/15, 11/14

• The International Rabbit - Rabbits 'round the world - 3 of 4 available
2/21, 8/22, 11/21

• Cemetery Spotlight - Your favorite cemetery featured - 3 of 4 available
5/30, 8/29, 11/28

• Mausoleums or Columbariums - A look inside or out
3/7, 6/6, 9/5, 12/5

• Final Word - Epitaphs to share
3/28, 6/27, 9/26, 12/26

Thanks,
Gale Wall
digitalcemeterywalk@gmail.com

Update: GYR OJ Columns

Update on columns available:

• Rabbit Review - Publications and websites reviewed
• The Rabbit’s Tale - A little of this, a little of that
• The International Rabbit - Rabbits 'round the world - 3 of 4 available
• Cemetery Spotlight - Your favorite cemetery featured
• Mausoleums or Columbariums - A look inside or out
• Famous File - Local or national
• Cemetery Art - Beauty you see in the cemetery
• Final Word - Epitaphs to share

We have a lot of talent in our group and I hope you will consider sharing with your fellow GYR members.

Thanks,
Gale Wall
digitalcemeterywalk@gmail.com

GYR Online Journal Columns

Calling all rabbits...

It's not too early to work on our 2011 GYR Online Journal schedule. Here are the columns I am recruiting authors for:

UPDATED - Columns taken are marked through.

• Rabbit Review - Publications and websites reviewed
• The Rabbit’s Tale - A little of this, a little of that
• The International Rabbit - Rabbits 'round the world
• Cemetery Spotlight - Your favorite cemetery featured
• Mausoleums or Columbariums - A look inside or out
• Famous File - Local or national
• Cemetery Art - Beauty you see in the cemetery
• Final Word - Epitaphs to share

Not sure about writing for one...? Take a look at our past articles for examples. These columns will join our others to publish 4 times per year.

Please consider sharing on one of these topics with your fellow rabbits. If you have any questions please contact me at digitalcemeterywalk@gmail.com

Thanks,
Gale Wall 

Call For Submissions - Graveyard Rabbits Carnival August 2010 Edition

The topic for the August 2010 edition of the Graveyard Rabbits Carnival is: Favorite Season.

This topic was submitted by Henk Van Kempen, who authors the blog, The Graveyard Rabbit of Utrecht and Het Gooi. I know which is my favorite season, do you? Come on Rabbits, show us/tell us which season you've selected.

Submit your post to the carnival using the submission form. Submissions for this edition are due by July 25. Be sure to include a short description of your post in the “remarks” section of the submission form.

Graveyard Rabbit Carnival - July 2010

The topic for the July 2010 edition of the Graveyard Rabbits Carnival is: Scavenger Hunt. This topic was submitted by Julie Cahill Tarr, who authors the blog, Chicagoland Cemeteries. This edition of the GYRabbit Carnival looks as if you had a great deal of fun. So, let's begin our hunt to see what you've found!

Dorene from Ohio presents Graveyard Rabbit Scavenger Hunt posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay. Dorene from Ohio features images from cemeteries in the Sandusky Bay area of Northern Ohio for the July Graveyard Rabbit Carnival.

Midge Frazel presents GYR Scavenger Hunt June, 2010 posted at Granite in My Blood. This carnival was a great opportunity to review my collection of gravestone photographs. I took a few liberties but only had one category that I has to look for outside my collection. Great fun!

Linda Hughes Hiser presents GYR July 2010--Scavenger Hunt posted at Flipside. "Fifteen items found in various cemeteries in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio."

Gale Wall presents GYR Carnival - Scavenger Hunt posted at Digital Cemetery Walk. "Wow. A great carnival this month. I had such a hard time selecting a photo for each category. Fun, fun! Hope to do it again in the future."

Jennifer Geraghty-Gorman presents Graveyard Rabbits July Carnival: Scavenger Hunt posted at 'Over thy dead body'. "My scavenger hunt takes us into Hamilton Cemetery, Hamilton, Ontario, and Baron de Hirsch, The Old Burying Ground, and Fairview Lawn cemeteries in Halifax, Nova Scotia. All items were found, and I added a couple of extra shots including one of a very curious looking symbol I have not yet identified."

Stephanie Lincecum presents My Scavenger Hunt for the Graveyard Rabbit Carnival posted at Southern Graves. "Grab some lemonade and come along with me to Riverside Cemetery in hot and humid Georgia. I found everything needed to satisfy the scavenger's list. The best find? That would have to be the frogs playing cards."

Kimberly Sawtelle presents July 2010 Graveyard Rabbits Carnival: Scavenger Hunt posted at On a Grave Subject. " Finding interesting and unusual contributions for the scavenger hunt was the name of this game!"

Tammi Thiele presents Escape to the Silent Cities: Graveyard Rabbit Scavenger Hunt posted at Escape to the Silent Cities. "My many wonderful finds with comments for them."

Henk van Kampen presents Scavenger hunt posted at The graveyard rabbit of Utrecht and Het Gooi.

Pat Kuhn presents The Graveyard Rabbits Carnival-A Scavenger Hunt posted at Touching Family History.

Elizabeth O'Neal presents Central Coast Cemetery Scavenger Hunt! posted at The Graveyard Rabbit of the California Central Coast. "First scavenger hunt that I've been on since I was a kid!"

M. Diane Rogers presents Graveyard Rabbits - Scavenger Hunt - Fraser Cemetery - New Westminster BC Canada posted at The Graveyard Rabbit of British Columbia, Canada. "My scavenger hunt was at Fraser Cemetery in historic New Westminster near my home in British Columbia. I had fun with this and I chose some personal favourites as examples."

Melissa Brown presents Graveyard Rabbits Carnival: All items found for Scavenger Hunt posted at Pawprints Guiding Me to the Past. "My first carnival, I found all items listed for the scavenger hunt, personalized, so all items were found on my ancestors' graves in Illinois."

Carol A. Bowen Stevens presents Hunting Symbolism posted at Reflections From The Fence. "I saw this challenge over at Linda's Flipside, and it was not long before I was wondering, hmmmmm??"

That concludes this edition and it was terrific! Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Graveyard Rabbit Carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

And while you're here, take a look at past carnivals, there's so much interesting information to be found when you explore cemeteries with a Graveyard Rabbit:

March 2009
Exceptional Finds

April 2009
Burial Customs

May 2009
Cemetery Preservation

June 2009
Veterans' Memorials

July 2009
Obituaries

August 2009
Favorite Photo

September 2009
Carousel Edition

October 2009
Funeral Cards

November 2009
Write Your Own Epitaph

December 2009
In The News

January 2010
The Final Resting Place

February 2010
Cemetery Critters

March 2010
Forgotten Cemeteries

April 2010
Anonymous Graves

May 2010
Cause Of Death

June 2010
The Interesting, The Odd, and The Beautiful

New Article Available in the GYR Online Journal

This week The Graveyard Rabbit Online Journal welcomes the

International Rabbit

by Henk Van Kampen

Willem Marinus Dudok (1884-1974), a renowned architect, was City Architect of the Dutch town Hilversum. In this capacity, he designed many buildings - you can see his work everywhere if you visit Hilversum. His masterpiece is the town hall of Hilversum. Dudok did not only design buildings, though. He was also the architect of the Zuiderhof cemetery in Hilversum.

You'll find the rest of this article from the International Rabbit in
the Graveyard Rabbit Online Journal.