BY DAN HILDEBRAN
Monitor Editor
GREEN COVE SPRINGS—Clay County Chief Planner Beth Carson briefed the county’s Historic Preservation Board about cemetery preservation during the board’s Sept. 1 meeting.
Carson said she attended a webinar on the topic presented by the Florida Public Archeology Network.
She added that of the estimated 5,000 to 7,000 cemeteries in the state older than 50 years, only 1,700 are listed on Florida’s master site file.
“Currently, they are trying to encourage people to fill out forms to help document these cemeteries that are out there,” she said of the network.
Carson said the network offers cemetery protection training which covers cemetery management plans, proper documentation, volunteer management, headstone and monument care, and cemetery and burial laws.
The planner also reviewed the dos and don’ts of grave preservation. Dos include taking photographs of the grave from different angles, sharing grave information with local museums and genealogical societies, and using water and the chemical D2 to clean markers.
Don’ts include rubbing gravestones, cleaning graves and markers with bleach, using fertilizer or herbicides on or near the grave, or mowing too close, resulting in scraping or nicking memorials.
In other news from the Sept. 1 meeting of the Clay County Historic Preservation Board:
Resignation and vacancies
Carson announced that the chair of the historic preservation board: Felicia Hirsch, has resigned.
“We appreciate her service to the committee, but she has other opportunities, and she regrets that she cannot continue serving on this board,” Carson said.
Board members agreed to consult with vice chair Chris Stubbs before seeking a replacement for Hirsch. Stubbs was absent from the Sept. 1 meeting.
Carson said that with Hirsch’s resignation, the board has four vacancies, one in District 1 (Fleming Island), one in District 2 (Oakleaf), and two at-large vacancies.
She said anyone interested in serving on the board may apply at the county’s website.
Board members now serving are Karla Logston from District 3 (Orange Park), Deirdre Murphy from District 4 (Western Clay County), Randy Harris from District 5 (Lake Asbury and Green Cove Springs), and at-large members Chris Stubbs, Melissa Clearman, and Maureen Jung.
The board meets on the first Thursday of every month at 6:30 p.m. in Green Cove Springs.
KH plaque workshop
Murphy told board members that the Keystone Heights Heritage Commission is hosting a historic plaque workshop at the beach pavilion on Saturday, Sept. 14, From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“What we’re trying to do is educate homeowners that have homes that are more than 50 years old about their particular home and educating them on what it means to have a plaque and why they should think about doing it,” Murphy said.
The city’s historic plaque program promotes preservation and awareness of Keystone Heights’ history.
Successful applicants to the program are given a plaque to mount on the exteriors of their homes. The Heritage Commission said the plaques are intended to acknowledge the homeowners’ efforts to research and document the building’s history and to maintain the homes.
“In May, we did a tour of homes, Murphy said of the Heritage Commission. “We were expecting 50 people, and we had over 100.”
