My active interest in lost markers began with the re-uncovering of Christoph Gomber's 1866 stone, first found in 2011 but overgrown by grass again since then. I've set that stone upright. While looking for Christoph, I found his wife's buried cast-iron cross from 1860.
I have not found any indication of their son-in-law, Hermann Joseph Gassen (my relative), in this family plot. I believe the plot was purchased at the time of his death in 1857; his wife named as owner.
It's the lost graves of 2 Civil War veterans in my family tree that fuels my determination to uncover more stones. Parish burial register entries are the only remaining record.
Coincidentally, Peter Joseph Esser (1826-1873), my 2nd-great-grand-uncle (by marriage), was the first employee of this cemetery. His sons, grandsons, great-grandsons, & in-laws (even his widow's 2nd husband) followed him as cemetery employees.
