A Conservator's Habit: Documenting a Stone's Condition Year by Year

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I’ll never forget the first time I saw Mary’s stone. It was a little white marble tablet in a cemetary outside Pittsburgh, dated 1887. Looked fine from ten feet away. But when I knelt down and ran my fingers along the edge, I felt it — a faint, almost invisible crack running from the top left corner straight through the carved rose. I didn’t photograph it that day. Didn’t note it anywhere. Just cleaned it with D/2 and moved on. Two years later, I passed through again. That crack had widened into a gap you could slide a dime into. The whole top quarter of the stone was loose. If I’d documented that hairline fracture, the family could of had a conservator pin it before winter freeze-thaw cycle did the rest. I felt like an idiot. Took me three tries to build a good system. Worth it.

So now I do this thing — every stone I work on gets a photo diary. Same angles, same light conditions if I can manage, same checklist. I call it the annual checkup. And it’s not just for paranoid genealogists like me. If you’re a volunteer cleaner, a cemetery committee member, or a family historian, tracking a stone’s condition over time is the single best way to catch damage before it becomes a disaster. Let me walk you through how I do it — no fancy equipment, just a phone, a notebook, and a little patience.

Why Bother with Yearly Photos?

Because headstones don’t fall apart overnight. They chip, flake, and crack in slow motion. A little lichen grows, then more. A crack gets a little wider every winter when water freezes inside it. If you only see a stone once, you have no baseline. You can’t tell if that stain is new or forty years old. You can’t know if the lettering faded last season or last century.

I’ve got a folder on my phone called “Grave Watch” — just a plain folder, nothing fancy. Inside are subfolders for each cemetery. Every time I photograph a stone, I rename the file with the date and a short code: e.g., “2024-10-12_StMarys_Plot47_JohnSmith”. That way, if I’m back in 2025, I can pull up the old photo and hold my phone next to the real stone. Side by side. That’s the whole trick. And if I notice a new crack or a patch of moss that wasn’t there before, I know it’s time to call a conservator — or at least stop cleaning that spot until I get advice.

My Yearly Documentation Routine (What I Actually Do)

I do this every spring, usually late April, after the ground dries out but before the poison ivy gets bad. Here’s the exact routine:

1. Same three angles, every time. I stand directly facing the stone (full face), then at a 45-degree angle from the left, then the right. I use the zoom on my phone to get a close-up of any carved detail — lettering, symbols, dates. I take these shots even if the stone looks perfect. You’d be surprised how often a “perfect” stone has a hairline crack that only shows up when the light hits it right.

2. Lighting matters more than you think. I try to shoot in the same time of day — late morning, when the sun’s at a 45-degree angle. That casts shadows into the lettering and makes cracks pop. Overcast days are actually better than bright sun. No harsh shadows to hide things.

3. I use a cheap ruler for scale. I bought a 12-inch stainless steel ruler from a hardware store for like $6. I lay it flat on the base of the stone or next to a crack. Photograph it in the frame. That gives me a real reference for size changes year to year. A 1mm crack in 2024 that’s now 3mm in 2025? That’s a problem.

4. I write notes in a small Moleskine. Digital is fine, but I like paper because I can sketch. I draw a rough outline of the stone and mark where I see anything unusual — a flake, a stain, a loose piece. I note the wheather, the temperature, if it rained recently. Sounds obsessive, but it helps later when I’m comparing photos and wondering why a stone looks different.

What to Look For (and What to Ignore)

Not every change is bad. Some things are just natural aging. Here’s my cheat sheet:

Worry about:

• New cracks or widening of old ones (especially horizontal cracks near the base — that’s freeze-thaw damage).
• Flaking or spalling — where the surface starts to peel off like an onion. That’s often from old improper cleaning (someone used a wire brush or bleach years ago).
• White, crusty patches on marble or limestone. That’s sugar decay — the stone is literally turning to powder. Needs a conservator.
• Loose fragments. If a piece wiggles when you touch it, photograph it from every angle and don’t clean near it.

Don’t worry about:

• A little moss or lichen on granite. It’s harmless and actually protects the stone from acid rain. I only remove it if it’s covering lettering.
• Small color variations on sandstone. Sandstone changes color naturally as it weathers.
• A single ant. Not kidding. I’ve seen people panic over an anthill next to a stone. Ants don’t damage stone. Just brush them away gently.

Big mistake I made once: I saw a dark stain on a limestone marker and assumed it was biological growth. Sprayed it with D/2. Turned out to be a copper stain from a nearby bronze plaque. The D/2 did nothing, but I wasted time and solution. If I’d documented it the year before, I’d have seen the stain was already there and not new.

Tools I Carry for the Annual Checkup

I keep a small kit in my car year-round. Here’s what’s in it:

• Phone with a decent camera. I use an iPhone 13. Nothing special, but I clean the lens with my shirt before every shot. Dirty lens = useless photos.
• The $6 ruler. Already mentioned. Indispensable.
• A soft brush. I use a horsehair brush (not nylon — too stiff). I gently sweep off loose dirt and leaves before photographing. Never scrub.
• A spray bottle of distilled water. If the stone is dusty, I mist it lightly to bring out the details. Only on sound stone. Never on flaking or sugary surfaces.
• D/2 Biological Solution. I only use it if I’m going to clean that day. But I don’t clean every year. Sometimes I just photograph and leave. Cleaning too often can wear down the surface.
• Notebook and pen. Paper doesn’t run out of battery.
• A small magnet. Sounds weird, but I use it to check if a stone has iron pins or dowels inside. If the magnet sticks, there’s metal in there — and that metal rusts and expands, cracking the stone. I note that in my records.

I don’t carry any harsh chemicals. Never have. Never will. If you see someone with bleach or muriatic acid near a headstone, walk away and call the cemetery office. That stuff eats stone like acid on skin.

How to Store and Compare Your Records

Digital storage is cheap. Use it. I keep everything on Google Drive and an external hard drive (backup, backup, backup). I name folders by cemetery, then by plot number or surname. Inside each folder, I of subfolders by year: “2023”, “2024”, “2025”.

When I want to compare, I open two browser tabs side by side. Or I use a free app called “Photo Comparator” on my phone — it lets me overlay two images and slide a bar to see differences. Not perfect, but good enough.

I also keep a simple spreadsheet with columns: Stone ID, Date, Cleaned? (Y/N), New Damage? (Y/N), Notes. I update it after every visit. Takes five minutes. Over ten years, that spreadsheet becomes a history of the stone’s life. I’ve caught a few stones where a crack grew 2mm in one year — that’s a sign the stone needs immediate attention.

One last thing: share your records with the cemetery office. Most caretakers are overworked and underfunded. If you hand them a folder of annual photos and say “This one’s getting worse,” they’ll thank you. I’ve gotten free access to locked cemeteries just because I brought them useful data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Do I really need to document every stone I clean?

A: Not every single one, no. But I’d recommend it for any stone that’s historically significant, very old (pre-1900), or showing any sign of damage. If it’s a plain granite marker from 1975 that’s in perfect shape, you can probably skip the annual checkup. But for anything fragile or meaningful, do it. You’ll thank yourself when you notice a crack that wasn’t there last year.

Q: What if I can’t get the same lighting conditions every year?

A: That’s okay. Just note the time of day and weather in your log. Overcast is best because it diffuses light and reduces shadows. If you have to shoot in direct sun, try to shoot at the same time of day each year. I’ve had years where I shot at 10 AM and others at 2 PM — the photos look different, but I can still spot major changes like new cracks or missing pieces.

Q: Can I use a phone camera, or do I need a DSLR?

A: Phone is fine. I’ve used iPhones for years. The key is to hold it steady — lean against a tree or use a small tripod if you can. The biggest problem with phone photos is blur. I also turn off the HDR setting because it can smooth out details like cracks. And clean your lens! You wouldn’t beleive how many people photograph a headstone with a greasy fingerprint over the lens.

Q: How do I know if a crack is getting worse without a ruler?

A: You don’t, really. Eyeballing it is unreliable. That’s why I use the $6 ruler. But if you don’t have one, use something of known size — a coin, a key, even your finger. I’ve used my thumb before (about 2cm wide) as a rough gauge. But a ruler is better. It’s cheap and fits in your pocket.

Q: What if I find new damage? Should I clean it or leave it?

A: Leave it. Do not clean a stone that’s actively deteriorating. Cleaning can accelerate damage. Instead, photograph it from multiple angles, note the date, and contact a professional conservator or the cemetery office. If it’s a crack, don’t try to fill it with anything — no epoxy, no glue, no caulk. That’s a job for a trained conservator. Your job is just to document and report.