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The Virginia Genealogist, April-June 1983

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Preface for Book 7

TOMBSTONE INSCRIPTIONS Toms Brook and Vicinity Shenandoah County, Virginia

This compilation is being published for posterity, and as another tool for family researchers, genealogists, historians, and others, who have a sincere interest in their ancestors in the lower Valley of Virginia, and a deep respect for the deceased, and their final resting places, as it is all too common for individuals to forget their ancestors, and the memory dulls with each succeeding generation. It is hoped that errors of perception, transcription, and collation are minimal, as they are not intentional, however, they do represent the frailties of man. A tombstone inscription, per se, does not guarantee that the spelling of the name is correct, nor does it guarantee that the death dates, birth dates, and other data is correct, or "the gospel". Therefore, it is advisable that the inscription data be verified from other sources, if there is a doubt as to their correctness. Often times, tombstone inscriptions are arranged for by estate administrators, executors, distant relatives, friends, neighbors, and others, and the data that they furnish to the stonemason or monument manufacturer, may, or may not, be correct. Newspaper funeral notices and obituaries, and mortuary records, are some sources that may be helpful. Those using the name index of this volume are cautioned to search for variants of any surname that they may be interested in, as a great number of the listed surnames are of Germanic origin, and the very early scribes recorded the names in many different ways, mostly phonetically, and thus corrupted many surnames, and the perpetuation of the incorrect orthography. If one cannot locate the name, or names of their ancestors and collateral kindred in this volume, it is possible that they may appear in six previous volumes of tombstone inscriptions by this compiler-researcher, which were transcribed primarily in Shenandoah County, Virginia, as follows: (1) "Tombstone Inscriptions, Toms Brook, and vicinity, Shenandoah County, Virginia", 1981, 309 pages, soft cover, seventeen cemeteries, and a 3,500 plus name index. (2) "Tombstone Inscriptions, Strasburg, and vicinity, Shenandoah County, Virginia", 1983, 370 pages, soft cover, ten cemeteries, and a 5,600 name index. (3) "Tombstone Inscriptions, Woodstock, and Fort Valley, vicinities, Shenandoah County, Virginia", 1983, 460 pages, soft cover, 248 cemeteries, mostly private or family, and a 9,000 plus name index. (4) "Tombstone Inscriptions, Woodstock and vicinity, Shenandoah County, Virginia, 1983, 456 pages, soft cover, 24 large Church and community cemeteries, with a 12,114 plus name index. (5) Tombstone inscriptions, Shenandoah and Page Counties, Virginia", 1984, 360 pages, soft cover, 141 cemeteries, 34 of which were transcribed in Page County, Virginia, and a 8,140 name index, more or less, (6) "Tombstone Inscriptions, New Market, Mt. Jackson, and Edinburg vicinities, Shenandoah County, Virginia", 1984, 493 pages, 13,000 name index, 17 of the largest Church and Community cemeteries in the Southern half of Shenandoah County, Virginia. This instant volume of 495 pages contains an index containing 13,000 plus names. On page 487 is a miniscule index supplement containing some 25 names that failed the collation process, and do not appear in the main index. The city of Front Royal, Warren County, Virginia, has its share of War memorials and monuments, and it was decided that these monuments and memorials should be included in this volume, as a goodly number of the names inscribed on the monuments and memorials, are more than likely buried in Prospect Hill cemetery, or other church, community, and family cemeteries elsewhere in Warren County, Virginia. The huge Prospect Hill cemetery in Front Royal consumed 22 man days to transcribe the tombstone inscriptions. It is distressing that the "maiden names" of females lose their family name identity through marriage, and further distressing that only a marginal few maiden names are recorded on the tombstones. These compilers do not have the time to check the marriage records in the courthouse at front Royal, Warren County, Virginia, to obtain maiden names, but where the maiden names are known to the compilers, it is recorded in the name index.

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