Update! As of fall 2022, we have completed the Baby Land project! We reset all stones and ensured they were in their proper location. We are thankful to Green Lawn Cemetery for all of their support and assistance throughout this project. They are also adding in two pink granite chevrons to complete the heart shape. Once those are placed, we will hold a dedication ceremony.
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A three (possibly four) phase project that focuses on the Baby Land sections of the Historic Green Lawn Cemetery and Arboretum in Columbus, Ohio. Open for over 150 years it is required to maintain it’s 360 acres on limited funds.
Baby land sections are created as affordable locations for families to bury infants and children. Several of the sections date from the late 1800s, when many young families did not have the money to buy a family plot or had not yet thought that far ahead.
Often, baby land decline is due to several factors: most families are long gone or too elderly, the grim reality of children dying, and the fact that they are not one of the more grandiose sections of the cemetery mean that they are not of the highest priority.
Our mission is to care for these areas and restore the headstones to the best possible condition (cleaning, repairs, and resetting).
We are committed to using best practices – which isn’t cheap or quick to do. In order to raise the initial $500 goal, we opened a merchandise store selling shirts, totes, and COVID masks, with all proceeds going directly to this effort. All expenditures are cataloged and recorded for transparency.
Due to the dumpster fire that we call COVID19 – we will not be able to have a large volunteer pool that we had hoped for.
In the late summer of 2020, we began planning for this large undertaking. We were lucky enough to receive permission to take drone shots of each of the areas to help with mapping and before and after shots.
We continue to use best practices, social distancing, and working within the cemetery’s parameters – so the timeline for this project is variable.
Wendy and Zabrena are proud to be entrusted as the first volunteers to take on a project of this scale at Green Lawn Cemetery.
If you would like to help support this initiative, please visit our Merchandise & Support page.
For more information on the appropriate methods to conserve and restore headstones, please visit The National Center For Preservation Technology and Training
Gals in the Graveyard 