Restoring a Cemetery Plot (part III)

Continued from part II

The gravestone bases were then set on top of the leveled foundation stone and pinned to prevent movement. Next the gravestones were set and pinned to the bases.

Note the blackness on the gravestones and especially on the bases.  This, I read is a combination of lichens and the effects of acid rain on the marble stone.  I have D/2 Biological Solution which I sprayed on the the stones and then scrubbed with a soft brush.  It did appear to start to clean the stones but with impending thunderstorms and heavy rains my focus was mainly to upright the gravestones.  I will be coming back to fully clean the stones with the D/2 which costs $40 per gallon and then another $12 to ship.  Also, I need to epoxy the grave stones to their bases to fully secure them.

This is a before photograph taken Sunday May 5, 2013 showing the condition of my ancestor's gravesite before work was performed to correct this.

Above is after the work completed on Saturday May 11, 2013 minus the final cleaning and epoxy.

Restoring a Cemetery Plot (part II)

Ahh, I most definitely, and probably my father, are now feeling the pain, tight/sore back muscles from restoring the grave site of my great great great grandparents Michael & Magdelena Behrhof and some of their children at Our Lady Help of Christians cemetery in Glenmont.  The project took a little under four hours to complete.  It was hard work digging up the marble bases and the lower foundations and then leveling them.  But it had too be done.  All four grave stones had toppled over from age, gravity, settling of the soil, and I am sure the stones were hit by lawnmowers over the years.  

A series of photographs and details will be used to explain how this was accomplished.  Unfortunately the project is not 100% complete.  The stones need to be fully scrubbed with a monument cleaner called D/2 Biological Solution and the upper stones will need a monument epoxy spread in between the upper stone and the lower base to fully secure them.  All of the stones have been re-pinned with new steel rod.

Plenty of hand tools, levels, rakes, shovels, stone dust, crusher-run, a hammer-drill, a portable generator, steel rods, tampers, water, and cleaning materials were brought to the cemetery.  I did not want to forget anything that I might need!  The area looked like a construction zone.

After the grave stones were moved out of the way and the lower bases also removed, the bottom foundation was dug up and removed.  It was tilted approximately 45 degrees.  Very far from being level.

Next the soil under the bottom foundation was tamped down and a crusher run base was laid over the tamped soil.  The crusher run was then tamped down (upper photo).  A layer of stone dust was then put over the crusher run and leveled (lower photo).

The foundation stone was then placed on top of the leveled stone dust and checked for levelness (above picture).  Next the area around the foundation was back-filled and tamped (lower picture).  Note the drilled holes in the foundation.  Originally these holes had steel nails which held the base stone to the foundation.

Although this next photo is a gravestone base for a different tombstone at the Behrhof plot, it shows the new steel pins which were measured, cut, and installed in the base.  The actual gravestone then was set upon this base stone.  Holes were already drilled in the gravestone to accommodate the steel pins.  Note the cracks in this base stone.  My next project here will be to epoxy and seal the cracks.  The stone is cracked but not broken.

The remainder of this project will be continued in part III.

Restoring a Cemetery

Now that the warmer weather is here I will be restoring and repairing the grave site of my great great great grandparents, Michael and Magdelena Behrhof.  They immigrated from Bayern around 1849 and are buried in Our Lady Help of Christians cemetery in Glenmont.  It is a small family plot with only four gravestones.  However in the last few years all of the stones have fallen over.  

To prevent further damage and deterioration to their gravestones I will be digging up the lower foundation stones, removing them, laying and compressing crusher run stone, and then leveling the foundation stone with stone dust.  The base needs to be firm and level.  Next, all of these foundation bases and gravestones had holes drilled into them and the gravestone had a steel pin which held the stone upright on the base.

Over time these pins have deteriorated, rusted, and have broke toppling the stone.  I intend to replace the pins with stainless steel rod the size of the drilled hole opening.  This will prevent the rods from rusting and breaking in the future.  

This project will be a work-in-progress.  Perhaps I can finish it in one day?  But I will be creating another post with the actual procedure on how I did this work.  Also I will be cleaning the stones with a product called D/2 Biological Solutions.  D/2 is made specifically for cleaning marble.  It costs $40 per gallon and should be enough to clean upwards of 30 gravestones.  I will be posting how this chemical works.

Note the drilled holes in the base of the gravestone and the base stone.  The stones will be re-pinned with stainless steel rod.

The stone of Peter Behrhof on the left is still amazingly pure white without any cleaning.
   

Who's in that Picture?

Most all genealogists can relate to this scenario.  About twenty-five years ago, I got in touch with one of my maternal grandfather's first cousins.  Florence was her name.  She was in her early 80s at this time.  By today's standards, she amazingly lived in the same house all of her life.  Also, her Holland-born grandfather, Henry Koreman, (my great great grandfather) also lived in the same house until his death in 1923 at 120 Morton Avenue.  This was in the South End of Albany in the vicinity of the area known as the "Beehive", centered around Morton Avenue and Catherine Street.  

Florence and her sister, Elisabeth, pulled out two very old family photo albums from the attic.  The albums were their grandfather's.  Considering their age, the albums were in excellent condition, practically brand new.  They contained upwards of 80 to 100 photos.  The photos were a mix of Tin-types, Carte-de-Visites, Cabinet cards, and Card mounts.  As I poured through this genealogical "Holy Grail" find, my heart rate increased dramatically and I believe my mouth was watering.  Unfortunately, my hopes all soon started to fade.  

Florence and Elizabeth could not name anyone who was in any of the photos.  Now what?  These girls and my grandfather were the oldest of that still living generation at the time.  Who could identify these people?  I took the albums home and photographed each photo with an excellent camera and zoom lens stationed on a tripod with black and white film.  Scanners make this process much easier today!  

As time went by, I was able to identify perhaps 20% of the individuals by comparing the photos with with pictures of relatives in my possession.  I also brought these copies to all of the older cousins,  No one could recognize anyone in these photos..  I was told that the last person who could have identified most of the people in the albums was my great grandfather's sister, Mary Koreman, who also lived in the same house on Morton Avenue.  Mary passed away in 1962.  Six years before I was born.

I soon realized that even today we (my family) are guilty of not writing the individual's name on the back of the photo.  As we look at present day photos of our immediate family, we obviously know these people.  But in 50 years or even 100 years, where will these pictures be and who will have them?  Since this "heartbreak" happened to me, I have made an attempt to write on the back of the photo who the individual/s are and have mentioned this to others about preserving the identity of their relatives for future generations.

An excellent example of a Tin type photo of an unknown relative.

Could this Carte-de-Visite photograph be of the same man in the above picture?  The photo was taken in Rondout, NY.

This mystery photo was acquired from a different cousin in the same family.  This image was approximately 3" by 3" and was on clear glass.  The above image was not visible until something dark was placed behind the glass.  The image without a dark background looked like a negative.  I am not 100% sure but I believe this may be a Ambotype from the 1850s.  Could the man from all three photos be the same person?

As I acquire copies/scans of old photos, when known, I always write on the the reverse who the individual/s are with a pencil.  This way I am preserving for future generations who these people are.

May Cultural Events

As the warmer weather approaches here in the Capital District, here is a short list of some cultural events occurring during the month of May.  Details are listed below.  For more information please contact the venue/host, as event details can change anytime.

2013 Greek Festival

• $3 Admission fee, Children under 12 Free
  • Includes free raffle ticket and commemorative booklet
  • Save a $1 buy discount tickets through Price Chopper Tickets to Go!
• Rain or Shine – Indoor accommodations and large heated tent

Festival Features

•  Continuous LIVE Greek Music & Greek dancers in traditional costumes
•  Authentic Greek Restaurant featuring Gourmet Dining
•  Greek Pastry Shop featuring homemade pastries
•  Food Shops under the TENT
•  Souvenir and Jewelry Shops
•  Amusement Rides for young children – discount ticket with Advantage card
•  Church Tours
•  Free Parking and shuttle service

Check out their website at http://stsophia.net/events/2013-greek-festival/

PolishFest

May 31- June 2, 2013

The Capital District’s PolishFest is a celebration of Polish heritage – the food, music, art, language, customs and the culture of the Polish people. The annual Festival is held on the grounds of Blessed Virgin Mary of Czestochowa Church conveniently located at 250 Old Maxwell Rd., Latham, NY just off I-87.

The Festival features a vast array of favorite traditional Polish foods, including pierogi (stuffed dumplings), golabki (cabbage rolls), kielbasa (sausage), Bigos (hunter stew), Borscht (beet soup) and a huge assortment of gourmet Polish desserts lovingly prepared by our parishioners. Music and traditional Polish dances entertain festival-goers throughout the day.

Check out their website at http://www.polishfest-ny.org/index.html

$3 admission per day

Van Rensselaer Family Plot in East Greenbush

Earlier today with warmer weather upon us, I decided to take a walk/hike to the original burial plot of the van Rensselaer family.  It is located in East Greenbush.  But it will not be found easily.  The only way to get there is to drive to Hayes Road (off Route 9J south to Castleton) & the railroad tracks.  At the tracks, you need to walk along the tracks for approximately 1 mile north and the small family plot will be found on the west side of the railroad tracks.

The plot is just off the tracks about 100' feet in and is surrounded by a wrought iron fence and gate.  I do not know if it is on private property or on property owned by the railroad.  There are many stones located within the fence.  Many are very hard to read.  I believe that many of these individuals have been re-interned at the family plot in Albany Rural Cemetery.

Some of the burials here include Killian van Rensselaer (died 1845), Gerrit van Rensselaer, Harriet S. van Rensselaer, Cornelius van Rensselaer, and Maria Genet wife of Cornelius.  Without undertaking any research I am assuming that Maria Genet is a relative of Citizen Genet (1763-1834) who was a prominent Greenbush resident who also lived in the vicinity of Hayes Road.

Citizen Genet home, Prospect Hill on Hayes Road in East Greenbush.  Could it be that this family burial plot was located on Genet's land?

Killian van Rensselaer grave stone.

Harriet S. van Rensselaer grave stone.

Maria Genet wife of Cornelius van Rensselaer.

A great summer project would be to find out who owns the property and contact them to ask if it is OK to clean up and restore this old family plot before it disappears.

Upcoming ethnic/cultural events in the Capital District

To promote upcoming cultural & ethnic events in the Capital District, as I hear about them I will create advanced notice postings for them to help support their mission and their affair.

The German-American Club of Albany located at 32 Cherry Street off Fuller Road near Central Avenue will be hosting a Schnitzelfest next Saturday, April 13, 2013.  Details for the event are listed below from their webpage at http://www.germanamericanclubofalbany.com



Schnitzelfest

On Saturday April 13, 2013, get your German on at the German-American Club with our Schnitzelfest. This month we feature live music from Paul Slusar. Doors open at 5:00 PM. Dinner served at 6:00 PM. Dinner choices are Pork or Chicken Schnitzel with Oven Roasted Potatoes and Red Cabbage. Cost $20/person. Salad and dessert included. Walk-ins are welcome for music and dancing at $6 per person. For reservations, please call 518.439.5932. All of our events are open to the public!