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Grave Cleaning

The Pleasant View Cemetery in Moral Township, Shelby County, Indiana has burials from the 1830s to the present. Recently, the Fairland Historical Society, with Anne Hardwick and Bill Gulde, led a group of great volunteers for an evening of gravestone cleaning at the Pleasant View Cemetery. Thanks to all the volunteers who worked on this community service project as we continue to preserve history. This was an evening of wonderful teamwork!

  

Perhaps you would like to clean some gravestones in your area. There are some different opinions on how to do this, but this is what we recommend to safely clean the stones and do no harm.
1. In Shelby County, seek the permission of the Township Trustee for the cemetery if cleaning stones other than your own family.
2. Order D/2 Biological Solution: https://www.d2bio.com/.
3. Gather water in clean containers, a clean garden sprayer, gloves, wooden craft sticks, and soft bristle brushes.
4. Do not work on stones that are loose, broken or leaning.
5. Take a photo of the stone before you start cleaning.
6. Spray the stone with water (do not use the force of a pressure washer on old stones).
7. Use the wooden craft stick to scrape away lichen and grime.
8. Spray D/2 Biological Solution on the stone, and wait 5 minutes. Let it start to work.
9. Scrub, scrub, scrub with a wet brush.
10. Rinse away dirt on the stone with water, and repeat as necessary. Don't rinse too much; the cleaner will continue to work.
11. Take a photo of the clean stone. (It will look even better the next day when it is dry).
12. Be sure to leave the area clean when you leave.
Note: Bring a friend and visit while you both work!

These are some of the "after" photos.

 

Fairland Historical Society 2025 events are supported by City & County Progress Grants administered by Blue River Community Foundation.

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