My sources include cemetery records, Federal and New York State Census records, newspaper obituaries and other local resources [with much thanks to Lois and Norwood Barris who made so many of them easily accessible.]

Research documents for each family will be shared upon request but please explain your relationship, too... only because I'm curious.

If you can collect enough clues, the puzzle pieces do eventually begin to connect and Find A Grave is a terrific spot to stash basic family history for posterity! [photo borrowed here, with thanks to Phyllis L. Buckley]

June 2012 update re Mayville Cemetery, Chautauqua County, NY: using cemetery records and four different cemetery readings between 1927 and 1952, we have been able to compile a relatively complete list of names and locations which has recently been published in book form by the Chautauqua County Genealogical Society. This information has made it possible to identify many otherwise illegible stones in the Old Cemetery which has no lot numbers. This is a new and ongoing project. Be sure to check for captions on photos added to existing memorials as they may include more information. Also note that Peacock Cemetery is the original section within Mayville Cemetery and not a separate entity despite being entered on findagrave as such.

January-February 2013 project was to consolidate the Diane Chase lists of burials in St. Hyacinth Cemetery, Dunkirk, NY. Email names if you need more information about that cemetery. Please note that I have no locations for burials since 2001. If you can determine a location from the church office or elsewhere, email me about photo possibilities.

March 2013: all names added at St. Marys Cemetery in Dunkirk resulted from a project to research the families of Dunkirk Lighthouse Keepers. I do have the Barris book on that cemetery and may be able to answer some questions.

April 2014: a project to reconstruct the Old Town of Dunkirk Cemetery (aka German Burying Ground) is coming together and those records are being added. Dunkirk Cemetery is now a separate section within St. Mary's Cemetery and we are adding them accordingly. Ask and you might receive answers as many extended family members were later buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fredonia, so some family documents now exist.

August 2015: funeral records from St. John's German Lutheran Church in Dunkirk (now United Church of Christ) are slowly being researched and added. Many records specify Dunkirk Cemetery and it seems to be the default cemetery before 1897, but findagrave memorials are being upgraded or added to all local cemeteries as needed, including Cassadaga, Laona, Forest Hill, Sheridan, Arkwight, etc.

June 2016: slight detour as inlaws and outlaws have me in Glenwood and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, adjacent cemeteries in Silver Creek, NY. We were able to find an 1888 map of the planned cemetery but it differs from the reality in 1984 map (e.g., what genius reversed the old sections 2 and 3 along the way? and why were some letter sections combined or renamed with repeating numbers?) We're attempting to determine the actual lot number in some areas and settling for compass directions in others, e.g., Ss K;NC is north center area in section K. Email me if interested in the maps.

My sources include cemetery records, Federal and New York State Census records, newspaper obituaries and other local resources [with much thanks to Lois and Norwood Barris who made so many of them easily accessible.]

Research documents for each family will be shared upon request but please explain your relationship, too... only because I'm curious.

If you can collect enough clues, the puzzle pieces do eventually begin to connect and Find A Grave is a terrific spot to stash basic family history for posterity! [photo borrowed here, with thanks to Phyllis L. Buckley]

June 2012 update re Mayville Cemetery, Chautauqua County, NY: using cemetery records and four different cemetery readings between 1927 and 1952, we have been able to compile a relatively complete list of names and locations which has recently been published in book form by the Chautauqua County Genealogical Society. This information has made it possible to identify many otherwise illegible stones in the Old Cemetery which has no lot numbers. This is a new and ongoing project. Be sure to check for captions on photos added to existing memorials as they may include more information. Also note that Peacock Cemetery is the original section within Mayville Cemetery and not a separate entity despite being entered on findagrave as such.

January-February 2013 project was to consolidate the Diane Chase lists of burials in St. Hyacinth Cemetery, Dunkirk, NY. Email names if you need more information about that cemetery. Please note that I have no locations for burials since 2001. If you can determine a location from the church office or elsewhere, email me about photo possibilities.

March 2013: all names added at St. Marys Cemetery in Dunkirk resulted from a project to research the families of Dunkirk Lighthouse Keepers. I do have the Barris book on that cemetery and may be able to answer some questions.

April 2014: a project to reconstruct the Old Town of Dunkirk Cemetery (aka German Burying Ground) is coming together and those records are being added. Dunkirk Cemetery is now a separate section within St. Mary's Cemetery and we are adding them accordingly. Ask and you might receive answers as many extended family members were later buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fredonia, so some family documents now exist.

August 2015: funeral records from St. John's German Lutheran Church in Dunkirk (now United Church of Christ) are slowly being researched and added. Many records specify Dunkirk Cemetery and it seems to be the default cemetery before 1897, but findagrave memorials are being upgraded or added to all local cemeteries as needed, including Cassadaga, Laona, Forest Hill, Sheridan, Arkwight, etc.

June 2016: slight detour as inlaws and outlaws have me in Glenwood and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, adjacent cemeteries in Silver Creek, NY. We were able to find an 1888 map of the planned cemetery but it differs from the reality in 1984 map (e.g., what genius reversed the old sections 2 and 3 along the way? and why were some letter sections combined or renamed with repeating numbers?) We're attempting to determine the actual lot number in some areas and settling for compass directions in others, e.g., Ss K;NC is north center area in section K. Email me if interested in the maps.