Evansville, Indiana, USA

Unexpectedly Funny! Who do you think is going to be borrowing the books in this little free library? These libraries-in-a-box are usually placed closer to the souls to who still have the capacity to read, e.g., near churches, on town squares, or on court house lawns. Could this be the only one in a cemetery? [2022]

Colonial Beach, Virginia, USA

♫ 'Cause livin' up against the wall, yeah, has got us locked up. Come on and line up. ♫ In the 1930s, the ancient graves at the Washington Family Cemetery were lined up and brought into the 20th century. Here at Pope's Creek are buried George Washington's parents, grandparents, and great grandparents. [2011]

Sanahin, Armenia

A thousand years ago, Sanahin Monastery pulsed with the activity of Armenian monks, priests, scholars, and scribes. The small domed building is St. Grigor Chapel. In the background is the Scriptorium. [2015]

Corydon, Indiana, USA

Blue River Chapel identifies with no denomination, and services are limited to Sunday evenings. Given its wilderness-like location and cul-de-sac access, few people attend. Still, it does one thing of mega-importance for the community: It hosts a prosperous-looking and well-cared for cemetery. Kudos to Blue River Chapel. [2022]

South Wales, New York, USA

February is all about the number two, and 2/22 is a palindrome too! Two arms, two legs, and too rusty. Even though it's his only job in life, receiving the daily mail and newspaper is better than being consigned to the other side of that chain-link fence. Be sure to see yesterday's post. [2013]

Miami, Florida, USA

Paving the way for Geography Awareness Week this year were the Glasgow Climate accords. Yet, the agreement will allow greenhouse gases to rise by 14% over the next nine years even though they need to fall by 45%. Perhaps this memorial in Woodlawn Park Cemetery is destined to be seen as a harbinger of things to come: a graveyard home for our planet. [2014]

Moyock, North Carolina, USA

Twenty years ago, this day marked the last full day of life for 2,977 people killed in the attacks of 9-11. Almost 9 out of 10 of them were victims of New York City's Twin Towers collapse after each was hit by a hijacked aircraft. The day has etched itself into our memories and, in different ways, into cemetery memorials around the country. [2019]

McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania, USA

Is it a grave with a headstone and footstone, or is it a bed with a headboard and footboard? In the 19th century, death often came to imitate life. People were not dead, they were sleeping. Even though she departed this life in 1858, her floral bedspread still inspires warm feelings of home, thanks to someone in the family who keeps her spirit alive. [2021]

Amsterdam, Netherlands

♫ These Are a Few of My Favorite Things ♫ ~ Cemeteries: Cemetery space may be the last space we can call our own. Why not use it tell our story? That is the trend in memorialization, and it is well illustrated by Zorgvlied Cemetery, where an iconic Amsterdam symbol (XXX) serves as a "headstone." See also: Geographically Yours Cemeteries. [2015]

Hyde Park, New York, USA

Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt are buried here in the Rose Garden next to the "Big House," which he loved and she didn't. The humble tombstone was designed by FDR himself and cut from Vermont marble, the same marble used for the Washington Monument, the Supreme Court, and the U.N. headquarters in New York. [2019]

Boykins, Virginia, USA

 

On the eve of All Saints' Day, many families have let their demons soar (see the ghosts?) and slumber (see the grave?). Passing souls stop and gawk, but no one wants that black cat to cross their path. Happy Halloween! [2015]

Murfreesboro, Arkansas, USA

 

American Gun Culture ~ Exhibit E: Holding true to family values means having children and slinging guns. Not only have these parents commissioned an etching of the Weatherby Mark V on their departed son's headstone, they named the boy after the bolt-action rifle. [2012]

Chimney Rock, Nebraska, USA

Chimney Rock became an exclamation point (!) along the Oregon Trail for westward-ho pioneers following the North Platte River. Its iconic status is affirmed by its visual reproduction in lots of places, including cemeteries, such as this one in nearby Gering. [2019]

Spokane, Washington, USA

Sonora Smart Dodd, the "mother of fathers' day," was inspired by two things: (1) her own widowed father, and (2) the growing observance of Mothers' Day across the United States. The first Fathers' Day was celebrted in 1910 in Spokane, Washington, where both Sonora and her father now lie at rest in Greenwood Cemetery. [2019]

Oldtown, Kentucky, USA

What grade would you give this landscape tableau? How about a B? Look closely and you will see why. In fact, about one out of every seven people buried in this churchyard bears the same B name as on this headstone. [2017]

Denton, Maryland, USA

Cemeteries are often adjacent to old churches. In fact, before the 1830s, people were buried in either churchyards or family plots near home. That kept the quick and the dead close to one another. Today? Cemeteries are located as far from our everyday lives as possible. Still, though, they are beautiful places to visit, especially in the spring. [2013]

Portland, Maine, USA

May the fourth be with you! You must use the fourth! Happy Star Wars Day. The original Star Wars came out 43 years ago this month. With nothing else to do, you might as well spend the day binge watching all nine episodes. Thanks, Taz. . . The force will be with you always. [2019]

Jamestown, Rhode Island, USA

It's the first day of meteorological spring. Let the daffodils bloom! Let their coronas sparkle in the sunshine. Let their trumpets herald the coming of longer days and warmer temperatures. [2019]

Camp Verde, Arizona, USA

What is your superpower? For Kokopelli, with his Hopi pedigree, it's fertility, and he is also a flute-player, a mischief-maker, and, now, a pop culture icon. As a meme, he may even preside over burials (as on this headstone from Cottonwood), particularly if the departed shared Kokopelli's superpowers. [2019]

Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, USA

All Souls' Day marks the end of Hallowtide. Yesterday was All Saints' Day. What's the difference? For Roman Catholics, the difference is hard to understand for those outside the tradition. For Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutherans, there is no difference, but on the morrow, there will be prayers for congregants who have passed away over the past year. [2018]