L. A. and the group:
This was in the Tipton Tribune Wednesday.
A group of 75 Tipton Middle School students and
a couple of teachers are going to read headstones, take digital pictures as
well as using Global Positioning System for the cemeteries in Tipton County.
I knew about this project last year, but they had to get
funding before they could startl
This is a quote from the article:
"Tipton Middle School students are making history! Seventy-five students at
TMS are working on a project to record Tipton County pioneer burial sites.
Each burial site is logged by longitude and latitude using Global
Positioning system units. The monuments are photographed with digital
cameras and then the inscriptions from headstones are recorded in word
processing.
Next, students from Jeanie Cunnyngham's honor science class and Amy Cole's
pre-algebra class enter the information into a database which will be
available at the Tipton County Public Library and the Tipton County
Historical Society.
The idea for the project started several years ago when Amy Cole saw a need
to record burial sites before the monuments were worn away or destroyed.
The opportunity to implement the project came about last year when the
Indiana Department of Education offered $5,000 grants to schools to develop
a Learn and Serve community service project. The grant stipulated that
schools must match the $5,000 with local funds and have the support of
community organizations. Both the Library and Historical Society are
supporting the project with information, guidance, space, staff time and
advice. Matching funds were supplied by the Tipton County Foundation, the
Tipton Middle School Support Organization (TMSO) and by student
fund-raisers.
Students will be collecting data at Stewart Cemetery on
500 West in Tipton County from 9 AM to 1PM this Saturday. Stewart Cemetery
is located at the corner of Division road and 500 West in the woods on the
southeast corner of the crossroads. Entry to the cemetery is from 500
west, up a narrow drive to the East, just south of the intersection of 500
West and Division Road."
What a better way to teach them about cemeteries than
to get them started when they are young!
Joan Wray
Tipton County Pioneer Cemetery Restoration
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"Show me your cemeteries, and I will tell you what kind of people you have."
Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)