Club, Society, and Fraternity Gravestone Symbols: Part 2
Club, society, and fraternity gravestone symbols tell a story about the person buried there. But that is only helpful if you understand what the symbols mean. Once you understand the symbols, you will know more about that person’s life story. The symbols could even guide…
10 Best Fall Foliage Cemetery Trips
Alright, leaf-peepers, ready for a road trip!? Here are 10 of the best fall foliage cemetery trips you could take this year! Cemeteries are the perfect place to enjoy autumn because they are often designed as park-like settings where you can surround yourself in a…
Club, Society, & Fraternity Gravestone Symbols: Part 1
You’ve probably seen club, society, and fraternity symbols at the cemetery. They are on gravestones, flag holders, and statues. Some are so common that you may know what they mean at first glance. Others may leave you scratching your head in wonder. There are clubs,…
Military Flag Holders at the Cemetery
We’ve all seen them – those military flag holders at the cemetery. They are often right next to the gravestone of a Veteran, sometimes holding a flag but more often empty. But exactly why are they there? Who put them there? And what can they…
Announcing July’s Leaderboard Contest Winners!
Boom-ba-da-boom! Drumroll, please! Announcing BillionGraves July’s Leaderboard Contest winners! Congratulations to the top 15 uploaders and the top 15 transcribers during the month of July. And congrats to 20 more random winners as well! Each of you has won your choice of a terrific best-selling…
BillionGraves Summer Surfing Contest!
Whether you are surfing the internet to find your own ancestors or surfing to help with the BillionGraves database, we have a great summer surfing contest just for you! Hang 10 for Surfing Contest Prizes!! If you are one of BillionGraves’ top 10 transcribers or…
10 Cemeteries to See Before You Die
Pull out your bucket list and a pen! Here are 10 not-to-be-missed cemeteries you’ll want to see before you die! I can’t tell you how many people have said to us in hushed voices, as though sharing a secret confidence, “You know, I actually really…
Egyptian Gravestone Symbols
Have you ever come across Egyptian gravestone symbols in the cemetery – perhaps even on your own ancestor’s gravestone – and wondered why they were there and what they meant? Obelisks, pyramids, and other Egyptian symbols are fairly common throughout the United States, Europe, and…
June Double Prize Contest Winners!
Congratulations to June’s top BillionGraves photographer and transcriber Double Prize Contest winners! Thanks for helping to make June a great month to help more families find their ancestors! Surely, you made somebody smile when they saw their relative’s gravestone and data show up online this…
July Leaderboard Contest!
Because you’re so awesome . . . well, you are! We appreciate all the photos you take and all the transcriptions you make! So here’s another leaderboard contest for you . . . The top 15 photographers and the top 15 transcribers during the month…
May Contest Winners
Congratulations to all the Million More in May contest winners! You have made a million (and more!) people happy as they are able to find their ancestor’s burial locations due to your hard work! So thank you very much for every photo and every transcription!…
Father’s Day at Home and in the Cemetery
Sonora Smart Dodd had a great idea. It was such a good idea that we are still doing it more than 100 years later. In 1909, Sonora thought that it was nice that mothers had an official Mother’s Day, but she had no mother. So…