Claiming abandoned cemetery

There's an old cemetery a few miles down the road from my parents' house. I think it's abandoned. There used to be a big cobblestone road leading into the cemetery, but time has worn it away. The earliest gravestones date around the great depression. Some people just have cinder blocks or little tin signs to mark their resting place. The newest gravestones say they were laid in the sixties. Since then the forest has reclaimed the land. The grassy lawns and artificial flowers are all gone. There are hundreds of species of plants, trees, and mushrooms living there now. It's really quite beautiful and peaceful in this cemetery.

On a trip to rub gravestones I started thinking. If the forest can reclaim this land, why can't I? I live in WV - a state with very low property value. Abandoned buildings in my area have been sold off for only a hundred bucks with the promise that the new owner starts maintaining the property and paying taxes on it. If I could buy this land on the cheap maybe I could build a house there. I don't really know anything about construction, but I'm an able-bodied young man, and I know a friend who built his own house.

So there are a few questions I need answered. The first thing I need to do is confirm the land is abandoned. How do I do this? Will someone at my local courthouse be able to tell me? Will I need to find the original owner? If the original owner is dead or just uninterested in the property will I be able to buy the land from the county? I also have questions about zoning. Is it legal to build a house on cemetery land? I obviously won't build my house right on top of someone's grave, but it will be near graves. Can I run electrical lines and water pipes across this land? I have technical questions too. In order to move building materials onto the land, will I need to repair the old road (or pave a new one)?

I have a lot more questions too. I know that most people on this board won't be able to help me without knowing my local laws. I'm hoping that someone here can point me in the right direction. Who do I need to contact to have all my questions answered? Any help is appreciated.

The dead own the land.

A. what is 'Rub a grave'? it sound dirty.
B. if the latest grave is from the 60's, there's a good chance that some people still visit, so it's gonna be problematic.
C.I think cemeteries belong to the state (city, local federation whatsoever), and it's gonna be hell to get permission to buy that land.

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Originally Posted by koppayana

The dead own the land.

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I'm no lawyer, but I'm pretty sure dead people can't own anything.

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Originally Posted by dbz

A. what is 'Rub a grave'? it sound dirty.
B. if the latest grave is from the 60's, there's a good chance that some people still visit, so it's gonna be problematic.
C.I think cemeteries belong to the state (city, local federation whatsoever), and it's gonna be hell to get permission to buy that land.

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A. You put a piece of paper against a tombstone and rub a piece of graphite against the paper thereby making an image of the stone. Perv.
B. Visiting this cemetery is literally a hike in the woods. You have to climb over fallen down trees to get to the graves. I don't think anyone visits anymore. There has been absolutely no upkeep. Some of the gravestones have fallen over. This land is more forest now than cemetery.
C. So which is it? Does the State of WV own the land; does the county? Establishing who owns this land is the first step. There has to be someone whose job it is to keep track of who owns every plot of land in the county. Would that be my county assessor?

Surely the folks at the town hall know who owns what. They are the ones deciding on zoning as well, after all.

One thing to remember is that you might not be able to just bulldoze the graves, though, even if you somehow acquired the land from the town or parish (or whoever owns it). At least over here it's a criminal offense to desecrate graves or human remains (meaning, you can't own a real skull candlestick without a damn good explanation). But maybe the laws are different over there.

I like to be on the safe side for any project so:
I would be interrested in land near the cemetery rather than the cemetery itself.
Why?
Because even if it's abandonned and obviously no one cares about their parents/grandparents dead in that cemetery, should you tell someone about that project, you are sure to get plenty of people that will claim you can't do it... because it's a cemetery, because their parents/grandparents are there or whatever reason.

Practicality: maybe choosing the right place is easier for trucks to come, but also water pipes and electricity. Be careful that these might come very expensive if the underground is filled with stones. The longer, the more expensive of course. So the choice has to be well thought of beforehand.

After you know which places suits you best and is near enough the cemetery that is you place of interrest, then you'd have to know who owns the place. Probably some local administration. I do not know how it works in the US, so you could use some googling, go to administrations or whatever you see fit.
Know that it will purely be human relations in an administrative way of thinking. So you could get drawbacks from both parts... individualities not liking your idea or telling you its impossible (when it might be possible in fact), crossing incredibly dumb rules/laws.

Then there's the why you want to do it and if your motivations of today will last long years, to finish the project and then enjoy your living there.

I talked to someone at the county courthouse today. He said that if I could find the cemetery on a map he could tell me who owns it.

Also, I have no interest in bulldozing anybody's grave. I saw the movie poltergeist; I'm not letting that shit happen to me. I actually intend to clean up all these grave sites. I also don't want to bulldoze the forest. I think the forest here is beautiful.

I'm honestly not worried about drawing protests. I don't think that most people know the cemetery is here. No one at the courthouse had ever heard of it. I talked to someone in my assessors office who told me they routinely sell defaulted land to taxpayers.

Practicality is a problem. There's no denying that. The cobblestone road is in disrepair; I don't know if I could get a truck up that road without getting the truck stuck. I'd certainly have to clear away fallen trees from the road. I'm sure road repair isn't cheap. Maybe I could just spread out a few tons of gravel. After I take care of the road there's still the matters of electricity and water. I have to bury lines and pipes without disturbing any graves. Finding the graves is easy. Even the unmarked graves are obvious. I need to find out some guidelines on how close I can bury pipes to dead people. Does anybody know where I can request that information?

Edit: I just thought of more info I need. I need the cemetery records so that I can name all the unmarked graves. I read that federal law requires cemetery records be kept indefinitely. So how do I find this information?

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Originally Posted by samsonlonghair

Practicality is a problem. There's no denying that. The cobblestone road is in disrepair; I don't know if I could get a truck up that road without getting the truck stuck. I'd certainly have to clear away fallen trees from the road. I'm sure road repair isn't cheap. Maybe I could just spread out a few tons of gravel. After I take care of the road there's still the matters of electricity and water. I have to bury lines and pipes without disturbing any graves. Finding the graves is easy. Even the unmarked graves are obvious. I need to find out some guidelines on how close I can bury pipes to dead people. Does anybody know where I can request that information?

Edit: I just thought of more info I need. I need the cemetery records so that I can name all the unmarked graves. I read that federal law requires cemetery records be kept indefinitely. So how do I find this information?

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I would keep checking with the State and Town Zoning Codes (maybe even County) for all the building info.

As for records, check with the Town Hall or perhaps the local library. If they don't have it, they can tell you where it would be. That doesn't mean that records won't have been lost or otherwise accidentally destroyed.

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Originally Posted by samsonlonghair

Edit: I just thought of more info I need. I need the cemetery records so that I can name all the unmarked graves. I read that federal law requires cemetery records be kept indefinitely. So how do I find this information?

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This is a neat idea. +1

You mentioned needing road repairs. Gravel is a good temporary option. And you would need to lay gravel to lay down pavement anyway. But trucks can do fine even on dirt roads, assuming there isn't much rain.

You also mentioned talking to the courthouse. Find the place on a map, and they'll be able to tell you who owns it. Unless they're violating the federal law, or stopped keeping records before the law was enacted, the owners should have them, or know how to find them. I don't know about laying pipe, but "surely" (i am not a lawyer, etc), laying pipe/cable along or under the road ought to be legally safe. I'd go with that as a tentative plan, at least until you find a definitive answer. You can lay pipe/cable yourself pretty easily, with a trencher or even a bobcat + trencher if it's a long run.