Cemeteries & Other Historic Resources
Preservation doesn’t just apply to buildings. it is important to preserve resources like cemeteries and Native American sites.
Cemetery Preservation
The first rule in cemetery preservation is do no harm.
- Tips on Cleaning Grave Markers from the National Park Service
- NPS Brief 48: Preserving Grave Markers in Historic Cemeteries
- NPS Brief 38: Removing Graffiti from Historic Masonry
- NPS Brief 6: Dangers of Abrasive Cleaning to Historic Buildings (methods applicable to any masonry)
- Cemetery Preservation Manual from the City of Cape Giradeau, Missouri (created with Historic Preservation Grant Funds from the State Historic Preservation Office)
- Overview Page on Cemetery Preservation from National Park Service
Archaeology & Native American Sites
What is NAGPRA? NAGPRA stands for the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act which is a law that was passed in 1990 to facilitate the return for museums and Federal agencies to return certain Native American cultural items — human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, or objects of cultural patrimony — to lineal descendants, Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations.
Cultural Landscapes
What are cultural landscapes? The National Park Service defines them as:
“A geographic area, including both cultural and natural resources and the wildlife or domestic animals therein, associated with a historic event, activity, or person or exhibiting other cultural or aesthetic values.”
“Historic Landscapes include residential gardens and community parks, scenic highways, rural communities, institutional grounds, cemeteries, battlefields and zoological gardens. They are composed of a number of character-defining features which, individually or collectively contribute to the landscape’s physical appearance as they have evolved over time. In addition to vegetation and topography, cultural landscapes may include water features, such as ponds, streams, and fountains; circulation features, such as roads, paths, steps, and walls; buildings; and furnishings, including fences, benches, lights and sculptural objects.”