The Boothbay Town Report of 1940 noted that Cemetery District Trustees authorized the execution of contracts for perpetual care of cemetery lots at .75 cents per square foot, or $150 for a 10 x 20 foot lot.

From the contract: “Now, Therefore, in consideration of said payment of one hundred fifty dollars ($150) as aforesaid, the said Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Cemetery District, by virtue of the authority vested in it by Chapter 49 of the Private and Special Laws of Maine 1939, does hereby agree to keep said lot mown, level, and the turf in good condition, and the stones, monuments, markers and posts clean and in good condition, forever.”

The following year, the town report noted that 47 lots were tied to perpetual care contracts. By 1951, 110 perpetual care lots were identified. Contracts were sold until 1990. Available documents from 1941 to 1990 reveal perpetual care contracts totaling $85,481.43. No names are cited in the town report, so a walk through the cemeteries would have to be done to determine which lots are covered.

At some point perpetual care came to mean only mowing the grass. The cleaning and repair of stones was abandoned. The Cemetery District may no longer be legally or financially bound to these contracts, but is there a moral obligation? A promise was made. Should that promise be kept?

In 1997 Maine passed a law (1306) requiring 30% of lot sales to be put aside for perpetual care of cemeteries. The law states:

“This cemetery perpetual care fund must be created by depositing in the fund at least thirty percent of the proceeds received, in full and in installments, from the sale of lots and plots in the cemetery.” And clearly orders that said money “must be devoted to maintenance of the cemetery.” Individual perpetual care contracts are a separate issue, exempt from the law.

According to town reports, lot sales from 1998 to 2024 total $161,830.00. Had 30% of this amount been put aside, as directed by above cited law, the account would have $48,549.00. The Cemetery District voted this year to start an account with $12,450.00 of which only the interest can be spent.

Questions comments and suggestions are welcome here or you can e-mail bbcemeteries@proton.me. I will also help find the gravestones of family members.

Please note: This column being written as a private citizen and has no connection to the Boothbay- Boothbay Harbor Cemetery District. All content, including projects and opinions is the responsibility of the author.