Episode 7: Degenerate, Part 2

Picking up where we left off in Episode 7: Degenerate, Part 1, Part 2 delves into the deep, complicated historic reasons why cemeteries in New England became abandoned. We talk to the experts: Robin Lacy, of Spade and the Grave, who shares her research into Puritan burial customs and culture; Brian Post, of Standing Stone Landscape Architecture, who takes us on a tour of some of his gravestone restoration work; and Tom Giffin, of VOCA, the Vermont Old Cemetery Association, who walks us through why cemeteries are not just an opportunity for remembrance but also, community investment.

And we continue to explore what influences the neglect in white Anglo-American versus Black and Indigenous Persons burying grounds in New England. By again discussing the historical and current situations with the Western Abenaki Burying Ground in Bellows Falls, VT and the African Burying Ground in Portsmouth, NH, we try to shed a light on how and why marginalized groups become more so, even in death. Covid has made organizing interviews much more difficult and so while I have been in conversations with representatives from the Elnu Abenaki in VT and the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire to get their comments and perspective on the treatment of THEIR ancestors, it just was not feasible at this time. I hope next year to follow up with both groups and include an addendum to this episode with their interviews.

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Transcript

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View fullsize
Kathan Cemetery, Putney VT View fullsize
Archibald Moore View fullsize
Unknown Moore View fullsize
William Divoll View fullsize
Western Abenaki Burial Ground, BF, VT View fullsize
The Falls and The Mountain View fullsize
Forest Hill Cemetery, Charlestown, NH View fullsize
Forest Hill Cemetery, Charlestown, NH View fullsize
West St. Cemetery, Rutland, VT View fullsize
Rutland War Vets

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Special Thanks:
Sponsor for this Episode!!!
Oh My Goth Jewelry Co, by Lindsay Gilliland “Handmade Jewelry with an edge!” Find her fun, spooky and sweet skeletally inspired designs on her
Etsy shop: www.esty.com/shop/OhMyGothJewelryCo/ and follower her on Instagram @ohmygothjewelryco
Interviewees: Robyn Lacy, archaeologist, death scholar, archaeological illustrator, burial ground conservator and heritage consultant
https://spadeandthegrave.com/

Brian Post, Dry Stone Walling Association certified, Advanced Level 3 DSWA certification, DSWA instructor, gravestone restoration
http://standingstonevt.com/

Tom Giffin, president Vermont Old Cemetery Association (VOCA), cemetery commissioner for the city of Rutland, VT
https://voca58.org/

Musical Arrangement and Accompaniment:
Jennifer Vannell and Badger Studios, Denver, CO

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