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Grave Matter

Late in the day on Tuesday, October 13, I stopped by the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery to visit the grave of an old friend. As I entered the side that faces the ocean, my jaw dropped. A large backhoe and other earth-moving equipment stood silently over large sections of torn-up ground. Stacks of removed headstones and grave markers stood near large piles of dirt and deeply dug trenches. In other areas, the grass had been completely removed, leaving gravestones surrounded by bare earth.

Assuagement came in the form of a sign that explained what was going on: “We are in the process of raising and realigning grave markers and headstones…. No graves will be disturbed.”

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Later on, I telephoned the number on the sign and was eventually transferred to Kirk Leopard, the cemetery director. He explained that gravestones eventually become misaligned, both vertically and horizontally, due to settling and the occasional earthquake. Every ten years or so, he needs to send a crew out to realign them. This time, however, a different method is being used.

Following guidelines established by the American Battle Monuments Commission, a trench is dug and a long concrete beam is poured. Then concrete boxes are mounted in it, which form slots that the original gravestones can be placed into, leaving about an inch on each side. The gaps are filled with decomposed granite, sort of like gravel, which holds the marker securely in place. After the grave markers are reinstalled, the trenches filled in, and the grass replaced, the cemetery will be as beautiful as it was before, except the headstones will no longer shift or move over time.

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Late in the day on Tuesday, October 13, I stopped by the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery to visit the grave of an old friend. As I entered the side that faces the ocean, my jaw dropped. A large backhoe and other earth-moving equipment stood silently over large sections of torn-up ground. Stacks of removed headstones and grave markers stood near large piles of dirt and deeply dug trenches. In other areas, the grass had been completely removed, leaving gravestones surrounded by bare earth.

Assuagement came in the form of a sign that explained what was going on: “We are in the process of raising and realigning grave markers and headstones…. No graves will be disturbed.”

Sponsored
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Later on, I telephoned the number on the sign and was eventually transferred to Kirk Leopard, the cemetery director. He explained that gravestones eventually become misaligned, both vertically and horizontally, due to settling and the occasional earthquake. Every ten years or so, he needs to send a crew out to realign them. This time, however, a different method is being used.

Following guidelines established by the American Battle Monuments Commission, a trench is dug and a long concrete beam is poured. Then concrete boxes are mounted in it, which form slots that the original gravestones can be placed into, leaving about an inch on each side. The gaps are filled with decomposed granite, sort of like gravel, which holds the marker securely in place. After the grave markers are reinstalled, the trenches filled in, and the grass replaced, the cemetery will be as beautiful as it was before, except the headstones will no longer shift or move over time.

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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