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Sue Tolbert
Muskogee Public Library Staff, OK Cemeteries Preservation Soc., Muskogee
Co. Genealogical Soc.
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Autobiography
Web Information
Session Information
Autobiography
Having been serious about genealogy since I was a teenager, it was only
natural that I would wind up studying cemeteries since they are such a great
source of information. When my kids were small they thought that a cemetery was
a place to have picnics! About five years ago I began working as a volunteer at
the Muskogee Public Library. Seeing that there was not a good source of cemetery
information available for the county researchers, I began collecting and
compiling information. Many cemetery trips later, mapping, surveying,
photographing and documenting 153 cemeteries in Muskogee County, I am still in
the "collection and compilation" process (like genealogy...it will
never be "done"!). Believing that the internet was a good way to reach
out and help a lot of people, I tried something else new to me and learned how
to create web pages. I've established my own websites and work with others as
co-webmaster to help get free information online.
I have enjoyed teaching workshops, giving presentations to genealogical
societies and helping researchers learn about resources through my volunteer
work and as a part time library employee in the Grant Foreman Room at the
Muskogee Public Library.
My most recent interest is in establishing the Oklahoma Cemeteries
Preservation Association, Inc. to help restore and preserve Oklahoma’s
cemeteries. Our current project is to raise the funds to buy, clean up, restore
and provide a perpetual care fund for the Old Agency Cemetery in Muskogee
County.
Presently, I am a member of the National Genealogical Society, Muskogee
County Genealogical Society, The Association of Gravestone Studies, and the
Association of Professional Genealogists. I am a founding member and President
of the Oklahoma Cemeteries Preservation Association.
Web
Information
Email
Contact
Muskogee
County Genealogy and History
http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ok/county/muskogee
Muskogee
County OKGenWeb
http://www.rootsweb.com/~okmuskog/index.html
Oklahoma Cemeteries Preservation Association
http://rootsweb.com/~okcps/ocpa.htm
Saving
Graves-Muskogee County
http:///www.usgennet.org/usa/ok/county/muskogee1
Oklahoma Cemeteries Mailing List Homepage
http://www.rootsweb.com/~okcemete/okcem.htm
Oklahoma Ghost Towns
http://www.rootsweb.com/~okghstwn/
Shelby
County Illinois-US GenWeb
http://www.rootsweb.com/~ilshelb2/shelby.htm
Oklahoma
US GenWeb Archives:
Muskogee County
http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/ok/muskogee/muskogee.htm
Oklahoma
Lawmen and Outlaws
http://www.rootsweb.com/~oklawmen/lawmen.htm
Oklahoma
Veterans Memorial Page
http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ok/topic/veterans/
Muskogee
County Genealogical Society
http://rootsweb.com/~okmuscgs/index.htm
Session
Information:
Messages In Stone
 Why study cemeteries? To the avid genealogist,
the cemetery is a place to
find those "vital statistics" of our ancestors. But a cemetery is more
than that. It is a link, a connection to our past. The "vital
statistics" are important but the symbolism, the artwork, the carver, the
setting and even the stone itself are a bridge to understanding our past.
Our cemeteries, their grounds, their monuments, their epitaphs, tell us of
our historical and cultural heritage. They tell us of politics and religion,
wonder at our ethnic backgrounds, cry over our epidemics and our tragedies,
glorify war and sometimes even laugh at death itself.
This workshop will give you a different perspective of that cemetery where
your ancestors lie. Over 200 photographs of Oklahoma gravestones relate to the
history of our state from the Indians, the coming of the soldiers, the
missionaries, pioneers, the children, the lawmen, outlaws, the politicians and
the common man. From the deeply spiritual to the downright silly, you will see
why preserving these symbols of our past is important.
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