Headstones

Headstones are sometimes called gravestones and sometimes memorial stones.

Headstones are erected in Churchyards on about half of the burial plots.

Until the early 1800's almost  everyone was buried in their local parish churchyard

Whilst this is still true during the 1800's many non conformist religions owned their own churchyards and from the late 1800's municipal burial grounds began to be opened by local authorities.

Does everyone buried have a headstone?

In the 1700's only the wealthy would have a headstone but during the 1800's it became more and more common to have a headstone to the extent that by the  mid 1900's the majority of burial plots has a headstone.

How do I find out if my ancestor has a headstone?

You will need to know where your ancestor is buried.

Then you can either make a personal visit or you can consult a list of headstones or you can contact a churchwarden of a churchyard or a council officer of a council burial ground.

What information is listed on a headstone?

All headstones have the name of the person and normally the year of death.

Other information that you may find is date of death, date of birth, place of birth, age,reason for death , wife and other family members name  and achievements in life.

Are their Lists of Headstones?

Many family history societies have conducted surveys of churchyards and have recorded details of headstones. To find lists search on the Internet for the local family history society and then visit their web site.

Sometimes the details are available online but often they can be purchased quite cheaply on CD.

What condition are headstones in?

Headstones are normally made from stone on which details are engraved or printed.

In the late 1800's/ early 1900's small metal crosses were also common.

Headstones often deteriorate due to the weather and growths of lichen.

The headstone is difficult to read.

NEVER rub or scrape a headstone which permission from the Parochial Church Committee and with the advise of an expert. Once a headstone has deteriorated incorrect cleaning will often destroy the information  for ever.

Often looking at the headstone from difficult angles and heights can help.

Late afternoon sun or the use of a bright torch can also help make out words.

Compare letters or numbers that you can read with some of those that are proving difficult.

Do I need permission to look for a headstone?

Churchyards operated  by councils are normally public places with behaviour controlled by by-laws.

Churchyards operated by churches or religious groups are private places.

In practical terms people seeking the headstones of their ancestors or welcome in most churchyards as long as they behave in an appropriate fashion without causing damage to any property or offence to other people.

There are usually no problems with taking photographs in churchyards although permission should be sought before taking photographs of memorials inside churches.

Permission  to visit can be sought from the local priest or churchwarden.

This is especially important of you in tend to travel a distance to visit as service or other activity involving the church may make your visit impractical at the time you propose.

Permission  should always be obtained if the visits are for a commercial purpose.

I know where my ancestor is buried  but how do I find the headstone?

Most burial grounds or churches have maps showing the location of the graves. If you have made contact with a churchwarden or council official they may be able to tell you exactly where to go.

If you are visiting  without prior contact there is no easy answer .

Some churchyards allocate plots in strict date order , some allocate family plots together and some allocate at random. Most churchyards have plots in straight rows.

The safest practice is to work out which direction the rows run and then walk along the rows alternatively checking each headstone in turn until you find your headstone.

I have found a headstone what next?

Details on a headstone may be confirmation of information that you have already found.

They may provide you with new Information about their life.

A photograph of the headstone is an interesting addition to your family history record.

Are there any headstone listings online?

Many Family history societies have groups that are actively visiting churchyards to catalogue headstone inscriptions.

Visiting the relevant FHS website may provide access to an online database or more likely offer the chance to but a CD containing the local inscriptions.

The national archive of memorial inscriptions is a database of inscriptions put together by volunteers. While there is some very good information in this site the volume of content varies according to the area and number of contributors.