My BillionGraves GPS App Workflow for Mapping a Whole Cemetery
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I’ll never forget the first time I tried to map a cemetary with my phone, it was a hot July morning, and I was standing in St. Mary’s old burial ground—the one behind the church with the leaning oak tree. My friend Joan had asked me to help find her great-grandmother’s grave. I had the BillionGraves app open, the GPS was spinning, and I was sweating through my shirt. After twenty minutes of wandering, I realized I’d been standing in the wrong section entirely. Took me three tries to figure out what I was doing. Worth it. Joan found the stone, and we cleaned it together with D/2 Biological Solution. That day taught me that mapping a whole cemetery isn’t just about snapping photos—it’s about having a workflow that doesn’t make you want to throw your phone into a bush.
So here’s my personal workflow for using the BillionGraves GPS app to map an entire cemetery. I’ve done about a dozen full cemetery maps now, and I’ve made every mistake you can make. This is what actually works. No fluff. Just the steps I follow, the tools I rely on, and the little tricks that save you from re-doing half the work.
Start with Paper and a Rough Sketch (Yes, Really)
Before I even open the app, I walk the perimeter of the cemetery. I take a notebook—a cheap spiral one—and I draw a rough map of the sections. I mark obvious landmarks: a big mausoleum, a flagpole, a weirdly shaped tree. This sounds old-school, but it saves you from getting lost in the GPS data later. The app will record the coordinates of every headstone you photograph, but if you don’t know which section is which when you’re looking at the map online, you’ll be guessing. So I label sections A, B, C, etc., and note where they start and end. For example, ‘Section A: from the oak tree to the chain-link fence, rows run east-west.’ Takes me about 15 minutes. Never skip this step. Big mistake if you do.
Set Up Your Phone and the BillionGraves GPS App Correctly
Here’s the thing: the app works best if you give it a moment to lock onto satellites. I stand still for about 30 seconds before I start photographing. I also turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth—they can mess with the GPS accuracy. In the app, I select ‘Add New Cemetery’ or choose the existing one from the list. Then I make sure the ‘GPS Tagging’ toggle is on. I test it by taking one photo of a headstone I can identify, then checking the coordinates on the app’s map view. If the pin is more than 10 feet off, I wait another 20 seconds. Patience here saves you hours of fixing misplaced pins later. And I keep my phone charged—I bring a portable battery pack because mapping a whole cemetery can drain 50% of your battery in two hours.
My Row-by-Row Photography Method
I walk each row in a straight line, starting at one end. I take photos of every stone I see, even the broken ones. I snap the photo with the stone centered, and I make sure the inscription is readable. The app automatically tags the GPS location to each photo. I don’t zoom in—I just stand close enough so the stone fills most of the frame. I do this row by row, moving from left to right, then down to the next row. If there’s a gap where a stone is missing, I still take a photo of the ground there. That way, the map shows the empty space. I mark the end of each row by taking a photo of my left hand holding a piece of colored tape. Sounds silly, but when I upload the photos later, I can see where one row ends and the next begins. I use a different color tape for each section. Green for A, blue for B, yellow for C. The app doesn’t care, but my brain does.
Handling Tricky Spots and Overgrown Stones
Not every stone is easy to photograph. Some are half-buried, some are covered in moss, some are leaning so far they look like dominoes about to fall. For those, I take two photos: one from straight on, and one from the side that shows the condition. The GPS tag goes with the first photo. If the stone is too dirty to read, I don’t clean it right then—I just note the location and come back later with D/2 Biological Solution. I never use harsh household chemicals or abrasive tools on old stone. Skip that stuff. Steer clear of strong acids or alkaline cleaners. They cause permanent damage, especially on marble, limestone, or sandstone. I just spray D/2, wait 10 minutes, and rinse with water from a spray bottle. Then I photograph it. For stones in dense grass, I use a small hand trowel to gently clear the base. No digging—just clearing enough to see the edge. If I can’t get a clear photo, I mark it as ‘needs revisit’ in my notebook. Honesty beats a blurry photo.
Uploading and Reviewing Your Map at Home
After I’m done in the field, I go home, plug my phone into my laptop, and upload the photos to the BillionGraves website. I do this within 24 hours, while the details are still fresh in my mind. The website shows all the GPS pins on a map. I look for obvious errors: a pin that’s way outside the cemetery boundary, or a cluster of pins that are all in the wrong row. I edit the location of any photo that’s clearly misplaced. The app lets you drag the pin to the correct spot on the map. It’s tedious, but it only takes about 30 minutes for a 200-stone cemetery. Then I review the photos themselves—if any are blurry or unreadable, I delete them and note that I need to retake them. I keep a list of those in my notebook. I usually go back within a week to fill in the gaps. And I always upload in batches, not all at once, because the website can freeze if you dump 500 photos at a time. Learned that the hard way. Never again.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How long does it take to map a whole cemetery with the BillionGraves GPS app?
A: Depends on the size. For a small cemetery with 100 stones, it takes me about 2 hours including the walk-around and setup. For a big one with 500 stones, plan on 6 to 8 hours spread over two days. I never do more than 3 hours in one go—my back starts hurting and I miss stones. Take breaks.
Q: What if the GPS coordinates are way off on some photos?
A: It happens. Usually because I moved too fast or the phone hadn’t locked on. I fix them later on the BillionGraves website by dragging the pin to the correct spot. To avoid this, I stand still for 30 seconds before starting each row, and I keep my phone away from metal objects like a water bottle or belt buckle.
Q: Can I use any smartphone for this, or do I need a special GPS camera?
A: Any modern smartphone with GPS works fine. I use an iPhone 12 and it’s accurate to about 10 feet. The BillionGraves app doesn’t need a fancy camera—just decent light. Don’t use a tablet, they’re too big to hold steady. And don’t use a cheap GPS camera that doesn’t run the app, because you’ll lose the automatic tagging.
Q: What should I do if a headstone is missing or completely unreadable?
A: Photograph the empty space or the unreadable stone anyway. The app will record a pin there. Later, you can add a note on the website saying ‘stone missing’ or ‘too worn to read.’ Other users might have old photos or records that fill in the info. Don’t skip it—every pin helps create a complete map.
Q: Do I need to clean every stone before photographing it for the map?
A: No. Only clean if the inscription is hidden by dirt, moss, or lichen. Even then, use a safe cleaner like D/2 Biological Solution. Never use bleach, acids, or wire brushes—they ruin the stone. I only clean maybe 1 in 20 stones during mapping. The rest I just photograph as-is. You can always go back later to clean them for a seperate project.