I can't find or verify the address for a cemetery. What do I do? |
The initial load of cemetery data come from GNIS. volunteers should verify the existence of data using other authoritative sites (states, counties, and similar) where available. In addition, Find-A-Grave (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cs) and BillionGraves (http://billiongraves.com/pages/search/#action=search_cemetery) are helpful if their entries have been verified. We have a topo layer (old DRGs, rather then the newer US Topo Maps) within the map editor. Now that our historical maps are available on TopoView (http://ngmdb.usgs.gov/maps/TopoView/), you can check the really old topos. Although it can be difficult in wooded areas, try to verify the existence of a cemetery using the imagery layer (TNM Imagery or NAIP). |
It is acceptable to use cross streets if you can't find an address number. For instance, "State Route 99 and County Road 46" would be acceptable. For rural cemeteries it can be difficult to figure out what town the cemetery is associated with. In this case, it is fine to leave the city name field blank, but please add the State designation. When using Find-A-Grave and Billon Graves, see if anyone has submitted information confirming the existence of the cemetery such as photos or grave information. If there is no confirming information, then please don't count that information as being authoritative. |
Also, it is important to note that the we should avoid using address ranges. Example:
Should be:
Best, |
If the address is not clear don't add it. Find a grave is pretty good. TNMap is okay. Add what you can. It is good to try and verify cemeteries using a variety of sites. Some counties and states have sites too. www.findagrave.com |