Cemetery Investigator Finds "Missing" Grave Sites
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When a headstone was dumped on a Tulsa, Okla., sidewalk, city officials knew whom to call. A decade ago, novelist and former private investigator, Dale Whisman started Lost Grave Locators to help families find "missing" burial plots. After several days of research and legwork, he found the cemetery where the 12-year-old girl, who died in 1913, belonged. The bottom of the marker matched perfectly with the foundation from which it had been broken.
Whisman notes that his part-time business is primarily focused in the Oklahoma region. He offers his services for $10/hour with a $50 minimum. If he needs to travel he charges 35 cents/mile.
"You can do a lot of things over the phone, through the mail or at libraries or historical societies," Whisman says. Clients hire him because they live in other states or don't want to take the time to do the legwork.
As an insurance fraud investigator for 11 years, Whisman knows who to talk to and what to ask. Name, death date, death location and a social security number make the process go easier, he says, though the people who died decades ago didn't have social security numbers. Military records can also be helpful. He starts with an obituary if he can find one and then makes his way through public records.
Whisman, 70, started his cemetery sleuthing when he realized he didn't know where his relatives were buried. His mother made a list of cemeteries and family members, and he tracked down great-grandparent headstones on his own.
Some cases have unexpected endings. When a headstone was found under a porch of a house the city planned to tear down, they hired Whisman. Fortunately for the city, no body was buried there. A husband had purchased a marker for his wife. After he died the family purchased a double headstone and, for a lack of a better place, threw the single headstone under the porch.
In another case, before buying land for a housing project, a building contractor hired him to check out the rumor that it was an old Indian burial site. Whisman located a single private grave about a mile away.
Most of his cases are for individuals looking for family, Whisman says.
"One family was looking for a young relative for a long time, and I found the plot," he explains. "They were so grateful they hired me to find two more relatives."
Another older friend was concerned that one of her relatives didn't have a marker. After he found the burial plot, Whisman helped her arrange to purchase a headstone.
Successes like that make the job rewarding, but there are times when he can't help.
"One problem is that there are a lot of private, family cemeteries," he notes. "There are no records, and it's very difficult with no headstones."
He discovered one case where a rancher piled up headstones because they were in his way.
Within the first five hours of research, Whisman finds the gravesite about 70 to 80 percent of the time. If he hasn't, he tells the client the odds of finding it and how much time it will take. For the fee, Whisman provides photos of the plot, cemetery name, map and directions to it and occasionally an aerial view. Sometimes he can provide other information surrounding the death and personal details.
"Primarily I do it to help people," Whisman says, admitting he's lucky if he covers his costs.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dale Whisman, The Grave Locator, 3436 S. 96 E. Ave., Tulsa, Okla. 74145 (ph 918 630-9293).
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Cemetery Investigator Finds "Missing" Grave Sites AG WORLD 34-5-23 When a headstone was dumped on a Tulsa, Okla., sidewalk, city officials knew whom to call. A decade ago, novelist and former private investigator, Dale Whisman started Lost Grave Locators to help families find "missing" burial plots. After several days of research and legwork, he found the cemetery where the 12-year-old girl, who died in 1913, belonged. The bottom of the marker matched perfectly with the foundation from which it had been broken.
Whisman notes that his part-time business is primarily focused in the Oklahoma region. He offers his services for $10/hour with a $50 minimum. If he needs to travel he charges 35 cents/mile.
"You can do a lot of things over the phone, through the mail or at libraries or historical societies," Whisman says. Clients hire him because they live in other states or don't want to take the time to do the legwork.
As an insurance fraud investigator for 11 years, Whisman knows who to talk to and what to ask. Name, death date, death location and a social security number make the process go easier, he says, though the people who died decades ago didn't have social security numbers. Military records can also be helpful. He starts with an obituary if he can find one and then makes his way through public records.
Whisman, 70, started his cemetery sleuthing when he realized he didn't know where his relatives were buried. His mother made a list of cemeteries and family members, and he tracked down great-grandparent headstones on his own.
Some cases have unexpected endings. When a headstone was found under a porch of a house the city planned to tear down, they hired Whisman. Fortunately for the city, no body was buried there. A husband had purchased a marker for his wife. After he died the family purchased a double headstone and, for a lack of a better place, threw the single headstone under the porch.
In another case, before buying land for a housing project, a building contractor hired him to check out the rumor that it was an old Indian burial site. Whisman located a single private grave about a mile away.
Most of his cases are for individuals looking for family, Whisman says.
"One family was looking for a young relative for a long time, and I found the plot," he explains. "They were so grateful they hired me to find two more relatives."
Another older friend was concerned that one of her relatives didn't have a marker. After he found the burial plot, Whisman helped her arrange to purchase a headstone.
Successes like that make the job rewarding, but there are times when he can't help.
"One problem is that there are a lot of private, family cemeteries," he notes. "There are no records, and it's very difficult with no headstones."
He discovered one case where a rancher piled up headstones because they were in his way.
Within the first five hours of research, Whisman finds the gravesite about 70 to 80 percent of the time. If he hasn't, he tells the client the odds of finding it and how much time it will take. For the fee, Whisman provides photos of the plot, cemetery name, map and directions to it and occasionally an aerial view. Sometimes he can provide other information surrounding the death and personal details.
"Primarily I do it to help people," Whisman says, admitting he's lucky if he covers his costs.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dale Whisman, The Grave Locator, 3436 S. 96 E. Ave., Tulsa, Okla. 74145 (ph 918 630-9293).
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