Double Check That FindAGrave Memorial

FindAGrave memorials are like any compiled source. Many contain a significant amount of material not on the actual stone itself. Verify the information the memorial contains.

Pictures of tombstones are probably reliable images of the original. Some photos make the inscription easier to read and others do not. Some photos are good, high-resolution images where magnification can enhance the readability. Others become pixilated. Transcriptions of what is on the stone can be incorrect–even when the transcription is easy to read. Supplemental information on the individual referenced on the tombstone may be correct–or it may be not. Treat that information as you would any other piece of information: verify.

Some memorials have precise dates of birth and death where the stone only has a year–verify. Some memorials have a place of birth where the stone does not–verify. The same is true for any relationships indicated on the memorial as well.

Information on burials where no stone picture is included and no source for why the memorial compiler indicated the person was buried in the cemetery are always a little suspect. Death certificates, cemetery records, obituaries, earlier cemetery transcriptions, and other sources are places to verify the place of burial when no stone actually exists.

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