New Jersey Cemeteries Panel Discussion

Thank you to all of the panelists who participated in our New Jersey Cemeteries Panel Discussion in celebration of National Family History Month.  We often take cemeteries for granted, assuming that someone will always be around to tend to the grave of a loved one; this is not always the case.

Here are some great observations and takeaways from the program:

• New Jersey has a wide-variety of cemeteries throughout the state.  Many are inactive and are in desperate need of attention, including grounds maintenance, gravestone restoration and repair, accurate inventory of interments, and fundraising.
• Cemeteries offer a great way to visualize ancestral relationships.  Oftentimes, relatives will be buried next to other; this can be a great way to help build your family tree!
• Cemeteries as the keepers of history!  The stories and lives of most people are lost to time.  However, names are preserved and can often inspire others to seek out those lost stories.  This can lead to new understandings about a particular place or person, advance historical scholarship, or simply give more context to how people lived their daily lives.
• Cemeteries are not just for the dead!  There are many wonderful programs and initiatives that cemeteries participate in for the betterment of the living, including educational programs for schools and children, docent programs for virtual visits, online databases/repositories of interments, and collaboration with community partners for community-based events and celebrations.

To watch and listen to the entire panel discussion, please visit https://youtu.be/ub2LBC-Httc/.  Below, please find the contact information for the cemeteries in attendance:

• Green Cemetery, Deptford – greencemetery2020@gmail.com
• The Greater Trenton Jewish Cemetery Project, Hamilton Township – https://gtjcp.org/contact/
• Princeton Cemetery, Princeton – cemetery@nassauchurch.org
• Mount Peace Cemetery, Lawnside – https://www.mtpeacecemeteryassociation.org/contact
• The Pennington African Cemetery, Pennington – http://www.penningtonafricancemetery.org/

If you have any questions regarding gravestone restoration or repair, please reach out to the South Jersey Cemetery Restoration Society – https://www.facebook.com/southjerseyrestorations/.