History Happy Hour: Stories from Maine Cemeteries

Maine gravestones from the 1800s were decorated with snapped flower buds, broken tree branches, and cracked columns to reveal that those buried below died before their time. From lightning strikes to shipwrecks, accidents to disease―and even a sensational murder―there were many causes for these untimely deaths. Award-winning cemetery historian and guide Ron Romano uncovers how mysterious symbols, epitaphs, monument forms, and cemetery landscapes tell the stories of those whose lives were cut short. Ron Romano is a cemetery historian recognized as one of Maine’s leading researchers of its nineteenth-century gravestones, symbolism, monument makers, and burial landscapes. He is the author of five books and multiple papers on these subjects. Ron has designed walking tours of twenty historic cemeteries and offers classes in gravestone symbols, family tree research, and related topics through Adult Ed and speakers’ programs at public libraries and historical societies throughout Maine. He’s served on local and national nonprofit boards for organizations dedicated to the preservation of grave markers and cemetery landscapes, including the Association for Gravestone Studies. Tickets are $10 for PHC members and $15 for non-members, and include refreshments. To learn more about membership benefits including program discounts, visit this page.