Anna Rothman, the Society's 2007 Cemetery Research Intern, sits by the stone of Margaret Huling in St. Peter's Cemetery. Huling's stone, which dates to 1707, is believed to be the oldest stone in Lewes.

Cemeteries can tell us much about our culture, our past and our ancestors. Since 2003, The Lewes Historical Society has been conducting systematic surveys of cemeteries and historic burial sites in Lewes & Rehoboth Hundred, Sussex County, Delaware. The Cemetery Survey is funded through the generous support of the Jessie Ball duPont Fund of Jacksonville, Fla.

This summer, Anna Rothman of New Boston, N.H., a junior double-majoring in History and English at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., has documented the cemetery at Coolspring Presbyterian Church, surveyed various family cemeteries near Lewes, and conducted statistical analysis through the thousands of records created over the course of the project such as trends in funerary art, age at death, deaths by time of year and others.

Rothman, who has studied cemeteries in her native New Hampshire, noted the many more religious denominations are seen here in Delaware and that the greater number and smaller size of cemeteries can be attributed to the number of denominations. "Generally," Rothman said, "New England towns have one larger cemetery that is publicly owned." One of her research areas this summer has involved examining cemetery differences between denominations. Another difference Rothman has observed is that in New England there is more of a focus on art on gravestones, whereas here in Delaware, there seems to be a continuing emphasis on longer, richer epitaphs with biblical quotations.

According to her research, there is a dearth of information on Delaware cemeteries and less information on Mid-Atlantic graveyards than there is on New England ones. "That is why it is so important that The Lewes Historical Society is doing this," Rothman noted.

A great mystery is where the stones came from and who carved them. Only thirty or so stones are attributed, mostly to carvers in Milford. "Who the carvers were other than Sipple and his partners has proven to be a challenge," Rothman noted.

Today, there is widespread fascination with colonial stones, but Rothman has pointed out that other eras are also very important. "Victorian stones may all look similar on the surface, but the epitaphs and art reflect the individual's preferences. Just like today, people did not limit themselves to the choices that were presented in catalogs."

Rothman has also been able to help the public understand the cemetery project and importance of gravestones. She has helped researchers who come to the Society's library use the database and points them towards interesting findings related to their families. Anna also organized the Society's "Stones 'n' Bones" educational program, suited for all ages, that helps to point out the history of local cemeteries and burial customs.

One of the most exciting parts of her summer continues to be when the public wants to interact with this project and enjoys finding out what a time-worn epitaph says or requests records on long-lost ancestors. Earlier this summer, the the Society was able to help a woman from Utah locate an earlier 19th century ancestor who is buried at Lewes Presbyterian Church.

Database Online

One of the major goals of this project has been to make the information available to the public on the Society's website. Society Executive Director Mike DiPaolo noted that the cemetery database - located at www.historiclewes.org/research/cemeteries.html - received over 100 hits the first several hours it was online. "Without making this available for genealogists for research and public officials to help make informed decisions with consideration toward sensitive cultural landmarks that are often hidden from view, this project would not have the impact it does," DiPaolo noted.

Currently the online database has field work from 2003-2006 available; Rothman's data will be online in early fall.

Click here to access the cemetery database.

Without the support of Eric Montgomery of The Computer Guy (TCG) and Al Toman of studio 9, who donated their time and talents in creating the online database, the online-access portion of the project could not have come to fruition. The Society also deeply appreciates the ongoing technical assistance of The Computer Guy (TCG).

Gravestones in the survey and in the LHS databse date from 1707 to 1950. No stones with dates of death after 1950 were included in this survey. The exception to this rule is if multiple persons are listed on a single stone and one has a death date prior to 1950, then each person is listed regardless of date of death.

Each stone is fully transcribed, photographed and located via Geographic Positioning System (GPS) device. The Society also records information about the stones condition, art work, shape and size. The Society enters this information into a database that is fully searchable at the Society's Library.

The online version of the database contains first and last name, cemetery location, birth date (if noted on stone) and death date (if noted on stone).

The GPS data is entered into ArcView, a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) system. This allows users to see the information spatially as well as to see individual cemeteries and the landscape as a whole develop over time.

What's next?

The Cemetery Research Internship will conclude in 2008 and the Society plans to publish the findings after that time. All records, including photographs, are stored at the Society's library and are available for research. To find out more about the project or to schedule an appoint to utilize the Society's Library & Archives, please call 302-645-7670.

©2002-2005 The Lewes Historical Society