We are still going strong after almost 13 years.  After all this time, we are family.

Wink, Lee, Gloria, B.J.
Me, Diane, Sharon
(Rich took the picture)

I bet you get the same look!

I knew this was the truth!

And I bet most of the loyal Tombstoners (you know who you are!) feel the same.

An Eagle Scout Honor

Last night was Eagle Scout Honor Court for Ryan Shupe. Ryan had contacted me during the summer asking about a cemetery project for his Eagle project. He rewalked the San Ysidro Camposanto and prepared all the information for upload to my website. He is a special, shy young man and it was an honor to be able to watch him get this award. There were letters to him from our congressmen as well as one from President Obama.

San Ysidro camposanto, Corrales, NM

On the Road Again

Once again we are off to Arizona.  I was determined to find the Rehoboth cemetery this time!  We (somehow) missed it 3 weeks ago.  WE GOT IT this time.

Rehoboth Cemetery (if you look carefully, you can see I-40 traffic in the background)

And we found Thoreau Cemetery

These two cemeteries look so much alike - they are all dirt and tumbleweeds.  They appear all but abandoned, but both have current burials.

Back to familiar grounds

We took a trip to Arizona and couldn't resist stopping at two cemeteries we haven't been to since 2004.  Not much has changed, thankfully, other than a few new graves.

Pioneer Memorial at Bluewater

Hillcrest Cemetery at Gallup

Our website

To see how our New Mexico Tombstone Transcription cemetery listings are progressing, click on the link below.  Charles Barnum, in Nevada, has been our webmaster and he is doing a fantastic job of putting the lists up and keeping all the different links straight.  I think it looks MARVELOUS!

http://newmexicottp.genealogyvillage.com/

Happy Family from California

                        
Several months ago I was contacted by Betty Villasenor, who lives in California.  She was trying to make a wish come true for her 93 year old mother, Hilda Velarde Salas.  Her mother was trying to locate the burial spot of HER mother, Josefina Duran Velarde who had died in 1929. 

I could find that Josefina was buried at San Jose Cemetery, but the exact location is lost.  This cemetery has been under the auspices of several different churches in Albuquerque through the years and records have been lost.  That is sad as it is a large cemetery with many names.  Thankfully I have two old records with names and we were able to ascertain that Josefina was here.

Betty, her mother Hilda and her three sisters as well as many family members travelled to Albuquerque from California to pay respect to their dear relative.  Their niece painted a rock to leave at the cemetery to honor her. 

I am so thrilled that through the work of the New Mexico Tombstomb group we could reunite this family.

A great year - and Fantastic volunteers!

December 10, 2013

As we finish this year, I am once again thankful for such dedicated volunteers.  But calling them volunteers seems wrong - they are actually family to me.  All of us consider each other our extended family.  Each brings such special joys and talents to our small but productive group.

Lee Miller is our world traveler.  He has been to Africa, India and many places inbetween.  He has taught German and his writing is so precise that it is difficult to read at time!  He is affectionately called our "Candy Man" as he brings a well-stocked bag of chocolates and goodies to every one of our meeting.

Sharon Serrano is one tireless worker!  She has single handed finished up Sunset Memorial Park with hours and hours of work.  She is tackling Mountain View (Barton) now all by herself.  She transcribed some old death records too!  Her hours almost exceed the groups totals!  And she comes in from the East mountains on sheets of ice at times.

Wink Winkeljohn is another tireless worker who keeps going even when he isn't feeling well.  He has done all the mapping work for the cemetery submissions to Charles for our website.  This takes quite a bit of effort with searching for signs of cemeteries on the satellite views and then getting precise directions.  And he likes doing this!

Diane Bloom has many hats she wears - even sometimes to Tombstone!  She volunteers in many, many different venues.  But she has tackled a very difficult book to currently transcribe - it is burials for Valencia county and most of it is written in Spanish, which she has to translate.  And she doesn't speak Spanish! 

Beautiful Barb Borowy - my fellow Corralenos!  Barb works tirelessly for Tombstone but she is also very versatile and knowledgable with Genealogy.  She has helped me find some of my relatives and set me on paths to find out more.  It was through her love of genealogy that drove me to find more.  I can always go to her with a question.  And her handwriting is gorgeous in our Tombstone books - the transcribers love her work!

And my non-complaining husband...he may want to, but doesn't dare.  He writes what I give him, drives me to hundreds of cemeteries in the state (actually in ANY state) and walks with me in the cold, wind and rain just to get 'one more picture of that grave over in the corner'.  I think the chocolates that our Candy Man brings keep him coming!

Missing this day at the library were Gloria Henderson, BJ Minshall and Betty Lamberti.  I'll catch them later.

Gettysburg Address update

In my post of November 19, 2013, I wrote about the Gettysburg Address given by Abraham Lincoln on the battlefield of Gettysburg.  After I made that post, I received a catalog from my sister of rare books and was surprised by an entry in regards to the Gettysburg Address.  I would like to include it here.

The actual name of the Address was "An Oration Delivered on The Battlefield of Gettysburg (November 19, 1863) at the Consecration of the Cemetery ; Prepared for the Interment of the Remains of Those Who Fell in the Battles of July 1st, 2d and 3d, 1863".  We know it as the Gettysburg Address.

This is a rare first edition of Lincoln's magnificent Gettysburg Address, scrawled on scratch paper and back of envelopes and corresponds almost exactly to his spoken version. 

The Washington Chronicle reported on November 21, 1863 the events at the cemetery and printed verbatim Edward Everett's 2 hour oration (which preceded Lincoln's address).  There was no mention of the President Lincoln's short speech.  Four days later the paper mentioned that President Lincoln had also given "a short speech".  Finally a pamphlet was printed of Edward's Oration (as it came to be known) and Lincoln's speech was tucked away as a final paragraph on page 16.  Later that year, a booklet was published of Edward's Oration and this time Lincoln's address was included - on page 40.  Despite the notoriety of Edward Everett's oration, it is only President Lincoln's short 2 minute speech that is remembered today.

This rare first edition of Lincoln's speech (handwritten) is available for $55,000.

Coins on Tombstoes

COINS LEFT ON TOMBSTONES

While visiting some cemeteries you may notice that headstones marking certain graves have coins on them, left by previous visitors to the grave.

These coins have distinct meanings when left on the headstones of those who gave their life while serving in America's military, and these meanings vary depending on the denomination of coin.

A coin left on a headstone or at the grave site is meant as a message to the deceased soldier's family that someone else has visited the grave to pay respect. Leaving a penny at the grave means simply that you visited.

A nickel indicates that you and the deceased trained at boot camp together, while a dime means you served with him in some capacity. By leaving a quarter at the grave, you are telling the family that you were with the solider when he was killed.

According to tradition, the money left at graves in national cemeteries and state veterans cemeteries is eventually collected, and the funds are put toward maintaining the cemetery or paying burial costs for indigent veterans.

In the US, this practice became common during the Vietnam war, due to the political divide in the country over the war; leaving a coin was seen as a more practical way to communicate that you had visited the grave than contacting the soldier's family, which could devolve into an uncomfortable argument over politics relating to the war.

Some Vietnam veterans would leave coins as a "down payment" to buy their fallen comrades a beer or play a hand of cards when they would finally be reunited.

The tradition of leaving coins on the headstones of military men and women can be traced to as far back as the Roman Empire.

Thanks to Wink for this information.

Soldiers' National Cemetery, Gettysburg, PA

150 years ago today

More than four months after the Battle of Gettysburg, President Abraham Lincoln participated in a ceremony to dedicate the Soldiers’ National Cemetery at the battle site in Pennsylvania. The president’s role at the ceremony was minor, but his short speech is now considered one of the greatest orations in our nation’s history. Today marks the 150th anniversary of Lincoln’s iconic words, which are etched into stone at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Maxwell Land Grant

Maxwell Land Grant and Lucien Maxwell

Charles "Carlos" Beaubien (1800-1864) was a French Canadian who  moved to Taos in 1823, opening a dry goods and trapper supply store.  He later married Maria Pabla Lobato (1811-1864), the daughter of a prominent local family, and became a Mexican citizen in 1827.  By 1840 he had become an influential Taos merchant with many large landholdings.  Lucien Maxwell was a fur trapper from Illinois who had traveled to Taos, the fur trading capital of the Southwest, during the winter of 1841-1842.  There he met Beaubien and the two quickly became friends.  He soon married Beaubien's eldest daughter, Luz (1829-1900) and they married in 1844.  Together the Maxwell's had nine children, among them a daughter Verenisa (1860-1864) who is buried in the old plaza along with her grandmother, Pabla Beaubien.

Winkeljohann Family Cemetery

Katrikna Cemetery in Voltlage, Germany


Al Winkeljohn, from my Tombstone group, sent me these pictures of his family cemetery.  The cemetery is St. Katharina Cemetery in Voltlage, Osnabruck, Lower Saxony, Germany.  This beautiful cemetery is in the small village of only 1750 people! 

November 11, 2013 Veteran's Day





World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

Today we honor all veterans who have ever served in a war or military conflict.  The list below starts with 1774 and is way too long.  Most of these are forgotten wars, but the men and women who served should never be forgotten. The list below is not an official one, just a list of wars/conflicts I could find.

American Revolutionary War
Northwest Indian War
Quasi-War aka Franco American War
First Barbary War
Tecumseh's War
War of 1812
Second Barbary War
First Seminole War
Arikara War
Winnebago War
Black Hawk War
Second Seminole War
Mexican American War
Navajo Wars
Cayuse War
Apache Wars
Yakima War
Rogue Rivers War
Puget Sound War
Third Seminole War
Second Opium War
Reform War
Paiute War
American Civil War
Dakota War of 1862
Colorado War
Snake War
Red Cloud's War
Comanche War
Modoc War
Red River War
Black Hills War
Nez Perce War
Bannock War
Cheyenne War
Sheepeater Indian War
White River War
Second Anglo-Egyptian War (the Egyptian Expedition)
Colombian Civil War (the Burning of Colón)
First Samoan Civil War
Ghost Dance War
Chilean Civil War
Second Samoan Civil War
Spanish American-War
Philippines-American War
Banana Wars (including the US occupation of Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic)
Boxer Rebellion (dosen't actually have "war" in its name)
Mexican Revolution
World War I
Russian Civil War
World War II
Cold War (not a "real" war)
First Indochina War
Korean War
Vietnam War
Laotian Civil War
Cambodian Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
Iran-Iraq War
Gulf War
Somali Civil War
Bosnian War
Kosovo War
War on Terror
War in Afghanistan
Iraq War
Second Liberian Civil War
Libyan Civil War

This is my grandfather, John Louis Ralf, in World War I

 Veteran’s Day Prayer

Dear Lord,
Today we honor our veterans,
worthy men and women
who gave their best
when they were called upon
to serve and protect their country.
We pray that you will bless them, Lord,
for their unselfish service
in the continual struggle
to preserve our freedoms, our safety,
and our country’s heritage, for all of us.
Bless them abundantly
for the hardships they faced,
for the sacrifices they made
for their many different contributions
to America’s victories
over tyranny and oppression.
We respect them, we thank them,
we honor them, we are proud of them,
and we pray that you will watch over
these special people
and bless them with peace and happiness.
In Jesus’ name we pray; Amen.

By Joanna Fuchs

A Huge Anniversary

Fairview Cemetery, Colfax Co., in Raton NM

Today marks exactly twelve years ago that New Mexico Tombstone Transcription Project began.  It was the day after the horrors of September 11 that about 15 people met at the Cherry Hills Library and learned what this project was about.  I didn't think anyone would show up but I was surprised by the curiosity and eagerness of these volunteers.  Just a few days later I had another training session with another 18 people!  Everyone was so interested in the project and wanted to help.

From the very first day, Al Winkeljohn and Betty Lamberti (she was at the second training) have been with my group.  They still show up almost every time, which is about 5 times a month.  They are both still interested, eager and dedicated. 

In these twelve years, we have advanced the knowledge of cemeteries in the state of New Mexico by finding many, many sites that were generally unknown.  Today we have identified 1864 cemeteries or gravesites.  Either Wink or I have been to 455 of these.  As it stands (today), San Miguel county has the most burial sites at 132.

The dedicated volunteers that give up hours each month to further this project are:

Al Winkeljohn (started 2001)

Betty Lamberti (started 2001)

Barb Borowy (started 2005)

Gloria Henderson (started 2007)

B.J. Minshall (started 2008)

Lee Miller (started 2009)

Diane Bloom (started 2010)

Sharon Serrano (started 2010)

and my loving, dedicated, sweet husband, Rich who has always been there

 

I had started this project in 2000, completing Gate of Heaven Cemetery on my own and very happy that there are many more to help me now.  Today I am continually grateful that my friends have stayed with this group and still want to do this project.  We are no longer a 'group of volunteers' but a family.

 

In addition, I have a dedicated group of transcribers busy entering the information from what we have written into the computer so it can be uploaded to the website.  They are:

 

Jackie Rhodes - who has been doing this 6 years! 

(For the last 2-3 years she has continued transcribing from her new home in Waco, TX)

Mary Kamoss

Michel King

Jessica Smead

Carrie Ackerson

 

One additional volunteer is Tory Eastman and her mother who live in Alamogordo, NM.  Tory single-handed took pictures of every grave at Monte Vista Cemetery in Alamogordo (a large cemetery).  The transcribers still have some of her work to complete.  And Tory's mother has faithfully been doing the Obit Times for the Alamogordo Daily News.  This too, adds tremendously to our information.

 

Every single one of these wonderful volunteers have a special place reserved for them in heaven.  Hopefully there won't be any cemeteries for them to walk, write or transcribe there.  They can rest eternally knowing they have added to the history and ancestry of all peoples on earth.

 

 



German Cemetery

Lee Miller, from our Tombstone group, sent these pictures to me of a German cemetery in the countryside of Luxemburg. 

This plaque is on the mass grave containing 4,829 German soldiers who fought in World War II

Philmont Scout Ranch

This weekend we took Gregory to Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, NM.  He is working on his Eagle Scout project and needed to meet with some staff members to discuss his project.  He will be documenting burial sites on the Philmont property later this year.

Of course we had to look for cemeteries while we were up there as well as on the way home.  This wasn't a very successful trip as we were looking for a total of 12 cemeteries and only found five!  Total miles driven was 511.

Mountain View Cemetery, Cimarron

Martinez Cemetery on Philmont Scout Ranch

San Antonio Catholic Churchyard at Angel Fire

Valdez Cemetery between Springer and Rayado

Abreu Cemetery on Philmont Scout Ranch







 

Unique Cemetery in United States

This cemetery is the "Key West Cemetery" in Key West, Florida.  It was established in 1847 after a previous cemetery washed out to sea after a hurricane.  This 19 acre cemetery is on the highest elevation in Key West at Soldier's Hill, barely 5' above high tide line.  There are approximately 75,000 burials here, both rich and poor and many stacked on top of other graves.  Many graves are above ground due to the very high water table on the island.

 

 

 

 

Thanks to Lee Miller for sending additional photos.

 

Around the World Part 3

In Bergen, Norway, there are many small cemeteries dotted throughtout the city.  As we toured the city, I was able to catch a few of them.  Most are on small plots of ground, next to houses or businesses and on the main streets.

Map of where Bergen, Norway is located