Riverview Repair-1

Huntingdon County PAGenWeb Project

Riverview Cemetery Repair Project

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The repairs to Riverview Cemetery began in the early morning hours of August 2, 2003. Volunteers Ken Murtiff, Rex Murtiff, Shawn and yours truly spent the day repairing the stones of I. Harvey Brumbaugh and Amelia H. Brumbaugh. In Ken Murtiff's opinion, these were the most severely damaged stones and would require the greatest amount of time to repair. All of us (with the assistance of Huntingdon borough employee "Buck" Rupert) worked until 3:00 p.m making the repairs to the stones. I have to say that without Buck, the task at hand would have been much more difficult. Buck spends most of his time in the cemetery maintaining the grounds, and he proved to be a huge help to us. On behalf of all, I want to thank Buck for everything he did to help out and to thank the Borough of Huntingdon for their cooperation.

1. The first photo gives an indication of what lay ahead for us.

2. Here they are testing for the proper fit before applying the adhesive used to hold the stone together.

3. This was a real challenge. I had my doubts, but the expertise of Ken, Rex and Shawn will soon be revealed. Ken works for Harrisburg Marble and Rex and Shawn work for Logistics in Palmyra, a warehouse for shipping out for Hershey Foods.

Harrisburg Marble was kind enough to donate all needed materials for the repairs. We are all grateful for their generosity.

4. Stones were drilled and pins placed in them to help secure the damaged stones.

5. The stone below has been reset but work remains to be done on the top, which was broken off.

6. Ken Murtiff looks as though he is beginning to put a jigsaw puzzle together.

7. More drilling!!!

8. Hmmm......Anybody have any suggestions?

9. The finished product!! We removed the clamps after the adhesive dried.

10. And for all who doubted that those jigsaw puzzle pieces could be put together, here is the end result of just absolute dedication. The cracks will be filled in on the next trip. We're going to be there again August 9 beginning at 6:30 a.m. It would be nice to see some more people (especially the locals) come out and help.

11. Day 2 of the project was challenging. Shawn and Rex could not make the trip due to work commitments. So Ken Murtiff, Foster Ulrich (mayor of Huntingdon) Tom Semple, Buck Rupert and I had quite a task to undertake. Tom was one of the three who was involved in the vandalism and is sincerely making an effort to make atonement for his actions. Tom is accepting responsibility for his actions and is well aware of what lies ahead for him. He seems to be taking the right steps in turning his life around.

The stone below was broken in two places and would prove to be challenging to say the least. Take my word for it; this is a heavy stone. We were fortunate to have Buck's lifting ability.

12. Ken Murtiff is seen here removing adhesive from his hands. The adhesive is difficult to remove and will last a long time. It hardens quickly and the longer it sets the harder it gets. I'm confident that it will do a superb job in the repairs.

13. Below is the second stone we worked on. It was not nearly as difficult and we had to improvise in our clamping as you can see by the ruler used.

14. Tom is seen here applying adhesive to the base of the first stone.

15. Our mayor, Foster Ulrich, was available to come out and help. He's taking a much needed break. The weather was hot and sticky and slowed our progress somewhat, but we didn't give up.

16. The photo below shows the back side of the stone. When filler is applied to the repaired area, there will be no noticeable cracks. Much time is involved in the repairs and I am getting a hands-on lesson in the process. It makes one appreciate the art of stone repair. It is not an easy task.

17. Below is the finished product. It is certainly a rewarding feeling to see the results of our work.

18. The tall monument stone in the top center of the picture below will be our starting point next Saturday. We'll need Buck with some heavy equipment to make these repairs. We've discussed a raise with the mayor and it appears he has granted our wish.

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