Buddy Mission: Gravestone Investigation

CREATE a daredevil team, EXPLORE the unknown, REWARD your Buddies!

Graveyards like this are really useful for Historians. They look at the gravestones and can find out amazing things about the people who lived nearby. You and your fellow explorers need to work together to investigate these ancient gravestones. Divide the tasks between you and record what you find out (bring some paper to write on!).

TASK 1: DATES

Find as many stones as you can that have a date that begins 18_ _. How many can you find? 
If you completed the Trail Mission you will have found the date of one of the earliest – it’s over 100 years old! 
If there are mostly stones with 18_ _ dates this means the graveyard was probably a more important place to locals back then.

TASK 2: NAMES
Which names are written on more than five stones? 
The ones that show up that often are families that have a long history in the area.

 
TASK 3: LANGUAGE
Do any of the stones have Gaelic words on them?
To get you started look for this stone. It is the only stone in the 
Graveyard written completely in Gaelic.
Gaelic was the main language of the area but in school they were taught - and sometimes forced! - to read and write in English. That’s why most of the stones are in English.

Don’t forget to use your Awards page in your Explorer Pack to reward your Buddies.

These Missions were produced in Partnership with The John Muir Trust and the Highland Council’s Countryside Rangers and Glen Nevis Visitor Centre.