A Vermont Woman Scrubs Grime From Gravestones and Researches Who Is Buried There – WTOP News
Caitlin Abrams pairs gentle grave cleaning with research into the lives behind 18th- and 19th-century headstones, drawing viewers to her historical videos.
- In Rupert, Vermont, creator Caitlin Abrams cleans historic 18th and 19th-century headstones, peeling away moss and dirt with a pump spray and brush while researching the lives of those buried.
- Abrams treats gravestone research like "journalism, but for dead people," cross-referencing death and marriage records to share biographical details, focusing particularly on young women and children.
- John Appell, CEO of Atlas Preservation, warns that amateur cleaning can damage delicate stone without proper training; an amateur genealogist in 2021 damaged roughly 200 gravestones in Maryland by scrubbing incorrectly.
- Cemeteries were historically public parks in the United States where communities gathered, a sentiment Abrams hopes to revive by removing the fear surrounding graveyards through her restoration work.
- Data visualization expert Joshua Stevens has mapped more than 144,000 cemeteries across America, many requiring restoration, while Abrams stresses that obtaining permission from cemetery officials is crucial before cleaning begins.
39 Articles
39 Articles
With a spray pump filled with water and a small, stiff brush, Caitlin Abrams stood before two very different-looking graves in a small cemetery in western Vermont, USA. The sky was overcast, while the surrounding hills displayed autumn colors. A year earlier, Abrams had carefully cleaned the headstone of Mary Bailey, who died in 1852, just 21 years old. The white marble headstone had remained almost untouched, in stark contrast to the adjacent g…
'It's like journalism, but for dead people': Meet the Vermont woman who turned a pandemic gravestone-cleaning hobby into a social media feed
Carrying a large pump spray bottle and a small, sturdy brush, Caitlin Abrams stood before two starkly contrasting graves in a modest cemetery in western Vermont. Overcast skies hung low over a nearby hillside in full autumn color. Last year, Abrams had delicately cleaned the tombstone of Mary Bailey, who died in 1852 at just 21 years old. The still-pristine white marble stone stood out compared to the neighboring grave, holding Bailey’s sister E…
A Vermont woman scrubs grime from gravestones and researches who is buried there – WTOP News
RUPERT, Vt. (AP) — Carrying a large pump spray bottle and a small, sturdy brush, Caitlin Abrams stood before two starkly contrasting graves in a modest cemetery in western Vermont. Overcast skies hung low over a nearby hillside in full autumn color. Last year, Abrams had delicately cleaned the tombstone of Mary Bailey, who died...
Winnipeg Free Press
A Vermont woman scrubs grime from gravestones and researches who is buried there
RUPERT, Vt. (AP) — Carrying a large pump spray bottle and a small, sturdy brush, Caitlin Abrams stood before two starkly contrasting graves in a modest cemetery in western Vermont. Overcast skies hung low over a nearby hillside in full autumn color.
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