The Association for Gravestone Studies

MARKERS XXVII has been mailed!
It was mailed to all members with memberships current during 2010 in November 2011.

2012 AGS Conference Press Release

The most recent press release regarding our 2012 conference is available. You can view it by clicking here (PDF File)

Students -- It's time to enter the 2012 AGS Student Paper Competition

Students -- earn a chance to attend the 2012 AGS Conference and Annual Meeting as a guest of AGS. Enter the AGS Student Paper Competition.

Requirements: The applicant must either be a graduate or undergraduate student at an accredited college or university, as well as a member of the AGS.

Application: The application will consist of the title, abstract and text for a scholarly paper suitable for presentation at the Friday Lecture Session. The entry should be in the exact form that it will be delivered at the conference, including visuals. It should be a twenty-minute presentation. PowerPoint is the preferred presentation medium.

The award will cover registration, plus room and board for the full conference (about $525) and will include a cash prize of $200, which will be presented at the conference.

The recipient of this award will be expected to present the paper during the Friday evening lecture session, June 22, 2012.

Deadline: March 31, 2012

Your entry should consist of a cover letter with a PDF attachment, emailed to Bob Drinkwater c/o info@gravestonestudies.org.

Call for Papers and Participation/Class Sessions

2012 AGS Conference and Annual Meeting
Monmouth University, West Long Branch, New Jersey
June 19 – 24, 2012

Proposals are solicited for scholarly papers, 20 minutes in length, to be presented during the evening and daytime lecture sessions. Please send your proposal and a 250- word abstract by February 1, 2012, to Lecture Programs Coordinators: Richard Veit, rveit@monmouth.edu and Mark Nonestied, mn1908@aol.com.

Proposals are solicited for Participation/Class Sessions, of 50 minutes in length, to be presented Thursday, June 21 and Friday, June 22. Please send your proposal and a 250-word abstract by February 1, 2012 to Participation/Class Sessions Coordinators, Robert Keeler robertk@clackamas.edu, and Judy Juntunen, rycraftjuntunen@aol.com.

Conference registration information to follow soon.

AGS Chapter Meetings:

Alabama: March 19, 2011, Huntsville, Alabama

AGS Cape Cod Chapter/Southern Massachusetts: October 15, 2011, Cotuit, Massachusetts

Illinois: Visit the Illinois Chapter on Facebook

Indiana: October 1, 2011, Lafayette, Indiana

North East New England Chapter: November 20, 2011, Lowell, Massachusetts

Ohio: Visit the Ohio Chapter on Facebook

Western New England: November 19, 2011, Palmer, Massachusetts

If you would like to start a state chapter in your area or want more information about the above meetings, please contact the AGS office at info@gravestonestudies.org

Donations in Memory of Fred Oakley

We are sorry to report that longtime member, past president, treasurer and trustee Fred Oakley passed away on October 2, 2011.

In 1997 the association named an award after Fred and his wife, Rosalee, known as the Oakley Certificate of Merit, which has since been given to many individuals and groups for their work in gravestone conservation. He often chaired the national conferences of the Association, most recently in his home town of Savannah, Georgia, in 2002 and Amherst, Massachusetts, in 2008. At their annual conference in 2011 in Waterville, Maine, Fred was presented the Harriette Merrifield Forbes Award, the most prestigious award the organization bestows.

In 2002 he was appointed to the Hadley Cemetery Committee and was twice named Hadley, Massachusetts Volunteer of the Year for his gravestone conservation work in Hadley cemeteries. He led a number of conservation workshops in the Hadley cemeteries and nearby communities to train others in the best methods to conserve their burying grounds.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to AGS: 101 Munson Street, Suite 108, Greenfield, MA 01301

Fred's favorite saying: Count that day lost whose low descending sun views from thy hand no worthy action done.

We'll miss you, Fred!

Visit Preservation Directory.com for a listing of AGS and other national events.

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