[MassHistPres] broken gravestones

[Tucker, Jonathan]

Margaret:

I think you're dealing with MGL Ch. 114, Section 18, and some case law.
I'd check with your Town Counsel about whether or not the authority to
"take charge of [a neglected burial site] and keep it in good order" in
default of any surviving family ownership of a grave (and there probably
weren't any owned plots as such in the 1700s) vests the Town of East
Bridgewater with any public ownership rights over the stones.  If so,
then the car accident damaged public property, and your request that the
repairs be funded by those who did the damage can be pursued on that
basis.

Don't give up on repair of the original slate stones.  Even if they are
not in any condition to be restored to their original state and be able
to stand up on their own, you can still keep them in place.  We just
restored a large slate stone in our 1730 burying ground that had broken
into three pieces.  We restored by placing it into a granite 'frame'.
Funded by a private individual (a descendant), the color-matched granite
was cut in the shape of the original stone but about 2"-3" thicker, and
with a 3"-4" frame showing all around the outside edge.  The granite was
routed out on one side so that the original slate pieces could be set
into the face of the granite.  One original surface was left visible and
flush with the surface of the frame.  It looks great, it's secure, and
it let us keep our original historic stone.  This approach provides
solid support and protection for fragile older stones like slate,
brownstone, or thin marble.

If you're interested, let me know, and I'll send a scanned picture of
the stone in question.  Keene Monument Co., Inc. (Keene, NH) did the
work.  I think Jay Blanchard was the representative involved.  Here's a
link:

http://www.keenemonument.com/contact.html. 


Jonathan Tucker
Planning Director
Town Hall, 4 Boltwood Ave.
Amherst, MA  01002
(413) 259-3040
(413) 259-2410 [fax]
tuckerj at amherstma.gov    
 

-----Original Message-----
From: masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu
[mailto:masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu] On Behalf Of MONA1927 at aol.com
Sent: Friday, January 04, 2008 3:50 PM
To: MassHistPres at cs.umb.edu
Subject: [MassHistPres] broken gravestones

In East Bridgewater we have a problem with an automobile accident
smashing 
old gravestones in our very old cemetery. We have presented an estimate
for replacement to an insurance company and they are fighting the cost.
These stones date to the 1700's and were slate.  We requested that they
be duplicated in granite because of the disintegration slate is apt to
have.  We have also requested that the epitaphs and all be duplicated.
We found a 
monument company that will do this for us.

The cemetery is in the National Historic District of the town. Has
anyone had a problem such as this.  What is our legal right to do this.

Margaret Alexander, East Bridgewater 
Historical Commission.


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