Cemeteries + Photos -- When Do You Need Permission!

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The holidays are often a time when we go and visit a local or family cemetery.  As we gather with family, we like to remember those no longer with us.

This also means that we might want to take photos.  As an individual, taking a photo here and there, we will probably not run into any issues and if we then decide to photograph the entire cemetery as part of a cemetery survey project,  or as a service project, a knowledge of legal rights becomes very important!

The Legal Genealogist, Judy G Russell, in response to a readers query ...

Reader Timothy Campbell in Elmira, Ontario, Canada, and a cousin of his in Grand Rapids, Michigan, have encountered some problems in taking gravestone photographs. “As an active genealogist I have taken part in transcribing and photographing headstones in cemeteries,” Tim writes. “I was recently told that I could not photograph headstones in our municipal cemetery without permission from the municipality. … The same scenario happened to my cousin in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in May. … What law does this fall under?”

... provides a lot of great information that you will want to know!  Read her post, bibliography and all the posted comments – a lot of really great information is to be found.

What has been your experience with cemeteries which you have wanted to photograph?

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