Tips to Picking a Grave Marker Headstone

Have you recently buried a loved one and need to pick out a headstone/grave marker monument for their burial plot? Here are some tips from Kari the Mortician as you start looking at markers.

@KaritheMortician
@theickfactor3894

[tiffanymims]

I tell families this same info all the time. Also, check the back of the stone near the bottom of the tablet (aka the upright portion of the stone) for a maker's mark or sticker. Some companies use them, and some don't, but if you start seeing one specific company whose work you absolutely love, then use that company.

[carriepillishafske]

The section of the cemetery my dad is buried at is all flat stones. Now my mom she is buried in a different cemetery ( my folks were divorced) and it's basically a mixture of flat and upright. I chose upright for her but went with a black marble looking because it matched her sister and brother-in-law stone and her mother's. They are all in a row so I thought it would look nice. When I die my place will be in that same row next to my mom. I guess I should make it known I want the same color marker.

[randyfritz]

Great idea to visit the best showroom of all a local cemetery or if your in another state to take photos also, you may find something unique from another state.

[snoopy]

Thank you for your utubes blessings and love

[therichlife]

Great tip!
I just ordered mine last month. It will be ready in about a year.

[sarahprosek]

Thank you your advice is ALWAYS GOOD and very Thoughtful.

[Greeley.d]

Before my wife passed we picked out two plots under a beautiful old tree. I knew what she wanted ahead of time. It’s a beautiful peaceful spot with wild flowers growing on her grave.

[margaretlaycock]

There is always more to it than you think, as Kari pointed out! 😊

[randyfritz]

Talking about grave markers/ headstones, the typical charge is $ 20.00 for each letter/ number for the first 20 letters /numbers and $ 10.00 for each additional letter/ number. Average charge for a marker/headstone is about $ 500.00.

[timw]

I agree go to cemeteries and look around. Take your time and don't feel rushed. Yeah most cemeteries have rules and regulations. The granite middle finger sticking up probably won't be allowed. Some things my local monument dealer told us. Avoid rough surfaces. Such as a background of the name and dates and lettering. Rough surfaces tend to get mold and lichen on them and make it hard to read after yrs of being in the weather. Use as much polished surface you can especially where the name and dates are. Avoid the laser etching also. It looks great with the colored etchings and over time the color will eventually fade. Use a granite pad and not concrete. A minumum of 4 inches thick. Some cemeteries only allow a granite pad. Concrete eventually breaks down. The monument is subject to tilting and shifting with concrete. Some monument dealers have used ones that can be re-polished and save you some money in some cases. Ceramic photo's make a great addition and memorial. Avoid made in China monuments. They have been known to mine the granite near fault lines and the granite is subject to breaking especially in winter weather. Some cemeteries won't allow monuments from China because of that. Black granite is expensive and is becoming harder to source in the U.S. Gray granite seems to be the least expensive. Avoid add ons like bronze, copper emblems, symbols etc. Chances are they will be stolen and damaging the monument while stealing.

[MaryJane]

I just recently bought a cemetery plot for myself, 2 miles from my home. I live Upstate in Brunswick, N.Y. It’s a single plot. I wanted a small tombstone, but was told it’s only for double burials, and for singles it has to be a ground plaque, I’m disappointed. My son is married and has two daughters, so I can’t plan for them, they are still young. My mother is buried in Yonkers, N.Y., my father in the Caribbean, and my only brother was cremated by his family in California. We are all scattered. 😢

[Hypestrike]

When it comes to selecting a grave marker, my top recommendation is opt for one made of polished granite as opposed to marble.
Granite is usually more expensive, but it is a much more durable stone than marble and less vulnerable to the effects of age, pollution and weather. If the marker is installed properly, this yields a long term advantage in that intensive maintenance will be less likely.
This is important because, as the years pass after a person dies and their family moves through the grieving process, the chances are family members will not visit as regularly as they did at first.
Looking ahead decades- or even a century- after the person has died, it is even more unlikely their descendants will regularly visit (if at all) and would be inclined to pay for a new marker if the original one has fallen into disrepair.

[lindadoran]

We made the funeral arrangements last summer and now need the stone. Your suggestions are helpful as always. I showed your episode to my husband. Are you going to be at Hearse Fest this year?

[nataliecassidy]

I would have preferred an up right grave stone but the area of the cemetery uor lots were bought in only allowed flat stones and the cost of flat head stones were some what less costly. From AKRON, OHIO

[margarethutchens]

There's a little cemetary near me that is a genealogists dream. Each stone has grand parents, parents, children and siblings on it.

[lomax]

I've already made my arrangements. I'll be in a military cemetery.

[johnallen]

What is the custom for the Graves & Headstones ? If someone sponse pass away & they remarry.

[johnallen]

Do they make a upright head stone in the traditional style. That you can put an urn ( s ) Inside the head stone? What would that be called ?

[aa]

I’m going to be in a drawer in a building. Nothing to pick out.

[robertmiller]

My daddy’s first wife died and then he married my mother within 18 months because he had 3 small children with his first wife. When he decided to get a plot for his first wife, it was large enough for 6 people including vaults. He then had a dilemma for the headstone. He had it made so he would be between both women. He was killed shortly afterwards and he was placed to the right of his first wife. That meant my mother would be placed to his right. Jealousy between two women is real. Just before she passed away in 2002, she told me how angry she was being buried on the wrong side of my daddy because she was married to him when he died she argued. Women!!!!