Getting permission contacts for cemetery cache hides

[medoug]

Here's a tip that I discovered for finding out who to grant permission for a cache placement in an "active" cemetery:

 

Look in the phone book for the closest cemetery monument retailer. Tell them that you need to know who to contact regarding an issue in a specified cemetery. They can usually provide the name of the maintenance person or members of the board for that cemetery as they usually work with those people when placing new stones. (Note that this only works with "active" cemeteries where monuments are still being added.) If they can only give you the name of the maintenance person, contact them to find out who is on the board. If it is a small cemetery, the board may only meet a couple times per year, so you might need to be patient with your cache placement before all members of the board can discuss it together and make a decision. If it's a really small cemetery, there may be just a single person in charge (sometimes it's actually the same as the maintenance person) to get permission from.

 

Does anyone have any tips for getting permission contacts for "inactive" (historic, neglected) cemeteries?

[+Manville Possum]

Sometimes the Find A Grave site has caretakers listed.

[+Isonzo Karst]

In the US, all land belongs to someone, and they're taxed on it.

 

That info is public information, available at county offices, and often online. Online is obviously the easy way to start.

 

Various software packages in use for searching property records. Some seem require knowing everything before getting anything ;-) - some are intuitive and easy, others are a bear. Often the info will come in a Pop up; if you use Pop up blockers, you'll always need to disable for the site.

Sometimes on land on where no taxes are collected (typically owned by government agencies), there will be ownership info.

 

In Florida, mostly you get land ownership info from the County Tax Appraiser, but i've seen other entities in other parts of the country (tax collector the most common variation). In New England, I've seen multiple regional government entities across state lines create and share a single site (which was a mess to use).

[steveo34]

So here's a question

If you own a plot in a cemetery say it might be a family plot

That is your family owned would you need permission to put

A cache there ??

[+niraD]

So here's a question

If you own a plot in a cemetery say it might be a family plot

That is your family owned would you need permission to put

A cache there ??

My guess is that it depends on the cemetery, and perhaps on the location of the cemetery.

 

One cemetery near here has an explicit policy allowing families to leave whatever memorial items they want at the grave sites. There are a few restrictions (e.g., dead flowers/plants will be removed, seasonal items will be removed a couple weeks after the holiday in question), but nothing that would prohibit a family from leaving a geocache as a memorial item. And one cache there was a fitting tribute to the departed family member, and to others who lived through the same historical situation.

 

But others may have different policies. And some states prohibit any activity that might be considered recreation in a cemetery. And in other places, people organize community picnics on cemetery lawns. So it really is a case of YMMV.

[medoug]

In the US, all land belongs to someone, and they're taxed on it.

 

That info is public information, available at county offices, and often online. Online is obviously the easy way to start.

 

Various software packages in use for searching property records. Some seem require knowing everything before getting anything ;-) - some are intuitive and easy, others are a bear. Often the info will come in a Pop up; if you use Pop up blockers, you'll always need to disable for the site.

Sometimes on land on where no taxes are collected (typically owned by government agencies), there will be ownership info.

 

I've tried the county assessor's office website and the information I'm getting on a particular cemetery is that it is exempt from taxes ($0) and it is deeded to the "XXXXXXX Cemetery Association" with no address or other details given. I could spend hours on various websites and working with the county and still maybe not get the information needed. Contacting a local monument retailer requires using a phone book and making a couple phone calls gets me the information I need in a much more timely manner.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Contacting a local monument retailer requires using a phone book and making a couple phone calls gets me the information I need in a much more timely manner.

 

What does "I need in a much more timely manner" mean?

 

You can alway create the cache listings with a note to the reviewer that you want to reserve the location until permission is obtained. If you intend on obtaining permission, the placement of the cache can wait however long it takes to obtain permission...even if that takes making a couple of phone calls.

 

 

[+Manville Possum]

Contacting a local monument retailer requires using a phone book and making a couple phone calls gets me the information I need in a much more timely manner.

 

What does "I need in a much more timely manner" mean?

 

You can alway create the cache listings with a note to the reviewer that you want to reserve the location until permission is obtained. If you intend on obtaining permission, the placement of the cache can wait however long it takes to obtain permission...even if that takes making a couple of phone calls.

 

Yes, it seems you can reserve a spot indefinitely if you keep in contact with the reviewer while you are working on a placement.

[medoug]

Contacting a local monument retailer requires using a phone book and making a couple phone calls gets me the information I need in a much more timely manner.

 

What does "I need in a much more timely manner" mean?

 

You can alway create the cache listings with a note to the reviewer that you want to reserve the location until permission is obtained. If you intend on obtaining permission, the placement of the cache can wait however long it takes to obtain permission...even if that takes making a couple of phone calls.

 

Yes, it seems you can reserve a spot indefinitely if you keep in contact with the reviewer while you are working on a placement.

 

I understand that a spot can be reserved for a future cache placement. What I meant was that it may take just a few minutes to make two phone calls, while it could take hours to find the same information on the internet, and maybe days to determine and contact local authorities.

 

Also, when I hide a new geocache, I like to do the preparation work and have it hidden in a couple weeks (depending on complexity) while all the information is fresh in my mind rather than string it out for a long time. That way it is done and off my plate of things-to-do.

Edited December 22, 2015 by medoug

[+wimseyguy]

In the US, all land belongs to someone, and they're taxed on it.

 

That info is public information, available at county offices, and often online. Online is obviously the easy way to start.

 

Various software packages in use for searching property records. Some seem require knowing everything before getting anything ;-) - some are intuitive and easy, others are a bear. Often the info will come in a Pop up; if you use Pop up blockers, you'll always need to disable for the site.

Sometimes on land on where no taxes are collected (typically owned by government agencies), there will be ownership info.

 

I've tried the county assessor's office website and the information I'm getting on a particular cemetery is that it is exempt from taxes ($0) and it is deeded to the "XXXXXXX Cemetery Association" with no address or other details given. I could spend hours on various websites and working with the county and still maybe not get the information needed. Contacting a local monument retailer requires using a phone book and making a couple phone calls gets me the information I need in a much more timely manner.

 

Wait, you still have phone books in Dubuque? How quaint.

[medoug]

 

Wait, you still have phone books in Dubuque? How quaint.

 

We do, but mostly use the pages as toilet paper in our out-houses.

Most of the time we use this to find the phone numbers of people:

whitepages on line

Edited December 24, 2015 by medoug

[+bjohio]

If the cemetery is next to a residential home, I find it helpful to talk to the local homeowners. Very often, they can tell me the name of the person who maintains the grounds and it also reassures the locals that geocachers won't be viewed as suspicious activity.