State and County Regulations
How To Document A Cemetery
Cemetery Maintenance

State and County Regulations

Kentucky
The Task Force on the Preservation of Kentucky Cemeteries published their Final Report and Recommendations in December of 2001. The Task Force addressed many issues, including right to access to privately owned cemeteries, relocation of abandoned cemeteries, and the violation of graves.

• Right of Access Rights and Responsibilities: Property owners cannot make access “materially inconvenient” and must allow for “proper ingress and egress to and from said cemetery on proper occasions and purposes”. At the same time, visitors must “be reasonable and as little burdensome to the landowner as the nature and purpose of the easement will permit”. In short, with proper and reasonable notification, the landowner should cooperate in allowing visitors to the cemetery and the landowner should expect that visitors to the cemetery treat the property with respect and not overextend their welcome.
• Relocation of abandoned cemeteries: If a cemetery is determined to be abandoned, then a public notice must be issued to allow family members to come forward. A declaration of abandonment is entered and family members have 30 days to remove monuments and remains from the property. After 30 days, remains are removed at the local government’s expense. *Expect this law to be revised in the near future. Boone County has more definite regulations pertaining to cemetery removal in Boone County, and all questions pertaining to cemetery removal should be referred to Mr. Matt Becher with the Boone County Planning Commission.
• The Violation of Graves (KRS525.115): “The intentional mutilation of a grave, monument, fence, shrubbery, ornament, grounds or building in or enclosing any cemetery; the intentional destruction, removal, or damaging of a headstone, footstone, or tomb, and intentionally digging into, plowing over, or removing any ornament, shrubbery, or flower placed upon any grave.” (Task Force, page 31) *It is important to understand that anyone inflicting intentional damage to a cemetery can be prosecuted under KRS525.115.

Boone County
Through the diligence of the Boone County Historic Preservation Review Board (BCHPRB), Boone County has a distinguished history in cemetery preservation. Currently, the 2001/2002 Boone County Zoning Regulations focus on the impact of development on Boone County cemeteries. Within the next couple of years, expect a revision of the BCHPRB 1989 Boone County Cemetery Preservation Plan.

• 2001/02 Zoning Regulations regarding relocation: “An applicant, property owner, or developer has the option either to (1) preserve an existing private family cemetery and develop around it or (2) relocate and existing cemetery. In relocating a cemetery a private family cemetery, an applicant, property owner, or developer shall be required to follow applicable local and state laws.” (31.17 Section 3166) *Please note that preserving the cemetery is encouraged under every circumstance and concerned groups, such as JWCSA, are willing to work with the landowner/ developer to find a solution to cemetery preservation issues.
• 2001/02 Zoning Regulations regarding preservation: “In preserving a cemetery, while at the same time developing a parcel, an applicant, property owner or developer has the following options: (1) transfer the cemetery the existing cemetery as part of a buildable lot… or (2) make the existing cemetery a separate lot…” (31.17 Section 3166) A tax-deductible donation of the property to JWCSA is a new option for property owners and developers who feel overwhelmed by the maintenance and responsibility of a historic cemetery.

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How To Document A Cemetery
It is important to document a historic cemetery for both preservation and genealogical reasons. Genealogy is such a popular pastime and many family historians are looking for the keys to their ancestry in family cemeteries. You can document a cemetery by...

• Transcribe the gravestone information by writing down the information by hand. Please don’t do rubbings of the gravestones- rubbings tend to erode the engraving on the stones over time. Please write down all of the information on the gravestone, the information was put there for a reason, any little bit gives a key as to who the person was and how their loved ones honored them.
• Photograph the gravestones with black and white film- black and white film brings out the nuances of engraved writing more clearly than color film. Photographs of gravestones are a great way of preserving an image of the stone in case the stone is eroded or damaged in the future. A great example is William and Anne Fitzgerald in the 1950’s. The Fitzgerald’s roamed rural Boone County photographing the gravestones they were transcribing. Fifty years later, those photographs are the only documentation (in some cases) that the gravestone and even the cemetery existed. What a wonderful contribution to the history of Boone County!
• Maps are a great way to assist in restoration and maintenance efforts in a particular cemetery. Even if the map is just a general sketch of the relative location of the gravestones to surrounding features (trees, fence lines, ditches, and roads), it helps get an idea of what the cemetery looks like. You don’t have to be a professional artist- just do your best!

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Cemetery Maintenance
Basic cemetery care is essential to long-term preservation of these valuable resources. Most of the do’s and don’ts are pretty straightforward and include a great deal of common sense. The gravestones are really quite fragile, having been exposed to generations of weather and vegetation. The key to cemetery care is if you are not sure, it is best to not do anything! You can contact JWCSA for any questions that you may have about how to properly care for your cemetery. A Graveyard Preservation Primer by Lynette Strangstad (1995) is a great resource in cemetery care and maintenance and most of the suggestions here are included in her book.

• Don’t mow immediately next to the stones and use guards on the lawn mower. The blades of the lawn mower and trimmer can easily chip and scar gravestones.
• Don’t use commercial herbicides near or adjacent to the gravestones. The chemicals can chemically erode the stones.
• Remove scrub trees and prune shrubs in the cemetery. Be careful of pulling out large roots! You don’t want to damage the burials further by accidentally pulling out more than just roots. Cutting scrub trees at or near ground level is the best option.
• Don’t move or remove gravestones. It is tempting to “fix” the stones by resetting them, but this is a task best left to the professionals. Please contact JWCSA for any help regarding broken or fallen stones.
• This last suggestion depends on how accessible the cemetery is on your property and how many visitors the cemetery gets on a regular basis. If practical, providing a bench and a trash receptacle will allow visitors to enjoy the cemetery while reminding them to respect the property. Also, a bench will encourage YOU to use the cemetery as a nice meditation space and enjoy the cemetery as an integral part of your property.