Google Maps For Graves.

[AllanUK]

Have just read about this this morning. Apparently funding has come from (amongst others) the National Lottery Heritage Fund; Historic England; 'plus support from genealogy research websites'. The scheme is expected to take 7 years.

[Top-of-the-hill]

  If they are working out from Cumbria, I don't think it will ever concern me in East Kent!

[Sloe Gin]

Our diocese has written to parochial church councils about this. Parishes have the choice to opt out of having their registers digitised.

Boo!   

[Rhododendron]

Whilst this seems a worthwhile project, I doubt it will prevent Vicars receiving requests for information about possible family connections.  In fact, it could actually add to the number of requests they receive!

[Top-of-the-hill]

  Yes - I can see that. "My great grandma is supposed to be buried here, why can't I find her with this app?"

[AllanUK]

  Yes - I can see that. "My great grandma is supposed to be buried here, why can't I find her with this app?"

Very true! Over the years when I have been looking around graveyards, I have overhead snippets like 'There must be a headstone as I know he/she was buried there, he/she is in the registers'

[Althea7]

I hope they do Irish churchyards, as there are very few records of Irish ancestors otherwise.

[Andrew Tarr]

I hope they do Irish churchyards, as there are very few records of Irish ancestors otherwise.

I don't suppose 'they' will do Irish churchyards, but as I mentioned above, some Irish churchyards have been 'done'.  One is the CofI church in Dungarvan on the south coast, where I found my gg-grandparents' gravestone, photographed and (inaccurately) transcribed.

[melba_schmelba]

I am interested to know about the technology in more detail, will the laser scanning allow proper 3D representation of the grave, and most importantly of an inscription? If it is just standard photographs, the weather conditions, angle of light, and dryness or dampness of the grave can make a vast difference in being able to read stones. What will also be done about graves covered in ivy or obscured by grass or other foliage, will an attempt be made to remove that? Doing that casually could easily cause damage and destroy what is remaining of inscriptions. Unfortunately I don't think this will really be a 'magic' solution in getting information from all gravestones, especially older ones.