Boothbay Region Cemetery District recently announced plans to expand Evergreen cemetery, located on Barters Island Road in Boothbay. The $30,000 project will target one of the cemetery's two unused back sections. Presently, the burial site consists of four sections. Three are full, and the other is at a third of capacity, according to Mike Hall, owner of Hall Funeral Homes. 

There is currently no information about how many new lots the expansion will create. Survey work still needs to be done to determine which sections are suitable for full casket burials versus cremated remains as the area lacks ground depth, according to cemetery district president Sara Fahnley.

The district oversees 11 cemeteries in the region, nine in Boothbay and two in Boothbay Harbor. However, Fahnley said Evergreen is the only one that still has lots available, with other gravesites only interring individuals who have spaces set aside from prior purchases. Spruce Lawn Cemetery in Southport also accepts new burials. 

2023 census records show that the median ages of residents in Boothbay, Boothbay Harbor and Southport are all at least 15 years higher than the state’s median age of 44.9. So, should we be worried about running out of room underground? Not yet, at least.  

Part of this is due to the increasing popularity of cremation, which takes up less space than a full casket burial and allows for multiple people to be interred on the same plot. Hall has been in the funeral business for over three decades. He's seen the number of cremations rise from 30% to 70% of burials during that time.  

“Some of it’s simplicity, some of it’s cost, some feel it’s more environmentally focused, and some people want to take up less space when they leave this earth,” explained Hall. He also attributes the rise of cremation to Maine's having less of a culture that emphasizes traditional burials, compared to places like the southern U.S.  

In addition, while people buying large family plots is less common, there is still a holdover from its popularity. Hall has had experiences where people have been able to get into otherwise full cemeteries because the family happened to own an extra lot. He advised having those conversations about interment location early. “And you may want to purchase an extra lot, just so there's one for family down the road.” 

Hall has also found that some people who retire in the area get sent back to their original hometowns to be buried. This is another reason why having a large population of older residents doesn’t necessarily correlate to the number of people being interred in local grounds.  

 “I think we’re in good shape for quite a while,” he said.