A Graveyard Preservation Primer (American Association for State and Local History) [Paperback]

Lynette Strangstad (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0761991301 | ISBN-13: 978-0761991304 | Publication Date: October 6, 1995

This slender volume encapsulates more information on graveyard preservation than any other restoration guidebook available. Packed with effective methods of maintenance and repair, A Graveyard Preservation Primer will help you restore and prolong the life of the stones in your care. Numerous photos and illustrations further clarify and demonstrate different problems and remedies for the beginning preservationist. Strangstad, who is familiar with historic yards from Halifax to Savannah, provides a step-by-step guidebook that is an indispensable reference tool for anyone interested in graveyard preservation.

Product Details

• Paperback: 126 pages
• Publisher: Altamira Press (October 6, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0761991301
• ISBN-13: 978-0761991304
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #238,758 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars By far, this is the most comprehensive book out on the topic, July 12, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Graveyard Preservation Primer (AASLH Primer) (Paperback)

The Graveyard Preservation Primer is a must read for anyone interested in the reasons to save old graveyards and how to go about doing so in a respectful and historically accurate manner. Her book is well researched and well written. It is straightforward and simple enough for novices, yet has enough insightful information for even the most informed reader. Her topics range from how to organize volunteers to do gravestone and graveyard cleaning to photographic techniques to get outstanding records of the stones. Her suggestions for cleaning techniques are well researched and very sound. Overall, this is just a superb manual. A must read before any work is done on an old graveyard. It will also enhance the experience of the graveyard afficionado, by exposing them to a whole new set of ways to observe the gravestones and yard.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly what it's entitled, January 3, 2001

By 

Kristin "Ol'Line Rebel" (Ellicott City, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Graveyard Preservation Primer (American Association for State and Local History) (Paperback)

This is a great concise, basic book on graveyard preservation - a real "primer" indeed. Anyone interested in such work should read this through at least once before ever attempting it, then it can be a quick reference after that. Covers briefly yet thoroughly all aspects of gravesite preservation, explaining what you'll have to think about even if it can't give you precise instruction. Lynnette Strangstad, writing for the Association for Gravestone Studies (AGS), does a fine job and includes bibliography and even some possible contacts for proceeding on preservation.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Leave your wire brush at home...., November 18, 2005

By 

Linda Pagliuco "katknit" (CT, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: A Graveyard Preservation Primer (American Association for State and Local History) (Paperback)

You'd think to clean an old gravestone all you'd need is a wire brush and some bleach, right? Or maybe a sand blaster? Turns out, that couldn't be more wrong. A Graveyard Preservation Primer is the most up to date guide for those wishing to conserve the old stones in their local graveyards, without unwittingly causing more damage. Materials and techniques for safely ridding stones of lichen, molds, and just plain dirt are explained, and they turn out to be surprisingly simple. But get ready to apply some good old fashioned elbow grease. As far as conserving/repairing stones that have already incurred damage, this has now become science, and Strangstad warns that it should not be undertaken by amateurs, however well-intentioned. Suggestions for locating professional assistance are included in this comprehensive manual. Anyone interested in cemetery preservation should begin by reading this work.