Every headstone we record brings a piece of local history back into the light, bridging the gap between quiet graves and the families searching for them. It is physical, deeply fulfilling work, knowing that an inscription could be the missing piece someone has spent years trying to find. From cemeteries that cover hundreds of acres to small family cemeteries, like the one we are focusing on today—every headstone is important and every person a lasting legacy. The graves we document are a tangible resource for families now and in future generations.

Lou Ann has been interested in tombstone and cemetery restoration since 1998, when she first attended a genealogy workshop and learned how a broken headstone could be restored. She began following and working with other restoration enthusiasts around the state of Indiana. Within a couple of years she was holding her own event at Harrisonville Cemetery in Battle Ground, Indiana. They created a website, Indiana Pioneer Cemeteries Restoration Project, and used Ancestry messaging boards to help get the word out about events and also to share educational resources. In 2015, Lou Ann became the volunteer webmaster there. Though today the site is no longer active, it shows steps to learning more about cemetery restoration and hosts information about Indiana Pioneer cemeteries. Lou Ann also volunteered to be the INPCRP County Coordinator for Tippecanoe County. Through all the years and with help from other volunteers in her community, they found and documented over 130 cemeteries. Many of these cemeteries would have been lost to time without these efforts. It was hard to choose which cemetery story to focus on, but we really liked this story Lou Ann shared with us about the Leaming Family Cemetery restoration.

A little background—Jeremiah Leaming was born in 1775 in Connecticut and then moved to New York with his parents. Later, he and his siblings (and families) moved westward to Indiana. Jeremiah bought a farm in 1830 from the Crawfordsville land office. George Leaming, Jeremiah’s son, received part of the land in 1835. George sold that land to the Mertz family, and it has been in their keep for generations.

Early in 2005, I had the pleasure of working with the Mertz family to reset the tombstones that were located on their property. Through volunteers working together, we were able to find a photograph of the family cemetery from about 1915.

Gordon Mertz purchased the land from his brother and had some childhood memories of the headstones. However, there was nothing visible on the land any longer, and the tombstones were lying around a tree about 30 feet away on a bluff.

Using the photograph and working from Gordon’s childhood memory we searched for the location of the burials. Another volunteer, Rich Green, who was experienced with metal detecting and Historic Archaeological Research, was able to locate the fence nails that were just below the ground surface, using a hand-held magnetometer. By marking the nail hits with flags, the rectangle area of the fence appeared! We knew we were in the right location.

Within a few hours, we were able to repair the tombstones and put them back up in a memorial fashion, side by side.

Through Findagrave, I shared the tombstones and photographs to this long-ago lost cemetery, as well as some of the family story of Jeremiah Leaming. 

It felt really good to save this family history, and others I’ve worked on. These tombstone readings from the past are invaluable to family researchers today and in the future.

Cemetery restoration is a passion of mine. I have worked with so many people, several boy and girl Scout troops, family members, trustees, owners and history students, Area Plan Commissions, and my own Tippecanoe County Area Genealogy Society members.  

I’ve really felt appreciated by others from this work. I’ve had awards from the State Indiana Genealogy Society, the local DAR chapter, and the SAR. Among many, many hugs and cards.  

This hobby was a perfect addition to family history. I learned about my county and totally enjoyed the change from the daily office. I am a gardener and I’ve told people, cemetery restoration is just a different kind of gardening. I loved working with people and loved this volunteer work. I can no longer work on restoration, but I do work on Find a Grave edits every day and still try to help give directions to folks that are starting a project.

I’m grateful to Findagrave for this site and the opportunity to share this family history. Our cemeteries are still being destroyed every day. So please take the time to contribute to your area if you can. It helps preserve this information for everyone and future generations who come searching later.