The needs of support by the congregation are as important today as it was in 1896. The plan of the Cemetery Board is that as long as funds are needed for the improvement of the cemetery, none can be alienated for any other purpose. It is important that parishioners become owners of gravesites in order that we may continue to have a beautiful, well-regulated, Christian Cemetery.

The matters covered herein have been grouped under the following subject titles in the order named.

1. Articles of the Board
2. Rules and Regulations
3. Interments and Funerals
4. Sites and Graves
5. Mausoleum
6. Family Estate Mausoleums
7. Legal Descent of Burial Rights
8. Amendments

I. Articles of the Board

Article 1. The object of the first committee formed consisting of George Kuenline and Andrew Keller of Newburgh, Indiana, was to provide suitable grounds for a Roman Catholic Cemetery, and to maintain and ornament same for the burial of such as are allowed to be buried under the rules of the Roman Catholic Church in a Roman Catholic graveyard.

Article 2. This committee was expanded and called the St. John Catholic Cemetery Board and the seal shall contain the words "St. John Catholic Cemetery Board", organized 1896.

Article 3. The Board, with the approval of the Parish Pastoral Council, the Pastor, and the Diocese of Evansville in the name of the Bishop of the Diocese of Evansville, shall have the power to purchase or take by gift or devise land for the sole purpose of a Roman Catholic Cemetery. The property shall be in the name of St. John the Baptist Church and the Catholic Diocese of Evansville, Indiana.

Article 4. After paying for such land, all future receipts whether from sale of sites or donations or otherwise shall be applied under the direction of the Cemetery Board to the laying out, preserving, protecting and embellishing the cemetery and the avenues leading thereto, and to paying the necessary expenses of the Board. No extra-ordinary expenses shall be contracted for, in anticipation of future receipts, without the approval and consent of the Parish Council. The Cemetery Board will not sell sites on credit. The board shall have the power to appropriate sites for the interment of such persons as deemed necessary by the Cemetery Board. The Cemetery Board shall set aside a certain portion of the ground which shall be used exclusively for the burial of the Roman Catholic Clergy. Surplus monies shall be deposited with the Diocesan Deposit and Loan Fund.

Article 5. The Cemetery Board shall be composed by no less than nine and no more than eleven members, one of which shall be the Pastor of St. John Catholic Church.

Article 6. The Cemetery Board shall elect by the ballot a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer from their own body. The officers shall hold their offices for one year, and until their successors shall be appointed and qualified. The Treasurer shall give bond, with surety, to be approved by the Cemetery Board, and in such sum as the Board, from time to time may agree upon, for the faithful performance of his/her duties. The duties of the committees are as follows: The Cemetery and Mausoleum Committee shall have the responsibility of showing and selling gravesites, crypts and niches, staking graves for opening and seeing that they are opened. The Maintenance Committee shall be responsible for all duties pertaining to the maintenance and upkeep of cemetery grounds. The Finance Committee shall be composed of the Treasurer and other members as deemed necessary to properly conduct the management of monetary affairs of the Board.

Article 7. The Cemetery Board shall have power to fill all vacancies in their own body from St. John Parish membership. Recommendations for new board members will be furnished by the Finance Commission. The Board shall have the power to lay out and ornament the grounds, remove and alter old buildings, and erect new ones. The Board shall prescribe rules for enclosing, adorning and erecting monuments on the cemetery sites, and shall prohibit any use, diversion, improvement or adornment of a site which they may deem improper. The Board shall appoint all necessary officers and committee members and fix their several duties, make such bylaws, rules and regulations as they may deem proper for conducting the affairs of the Board, and for the government of site-holders and visitors to the cemetery and mausoleum. A majority of all the Board members shall constitute a quorum for all purposes. The original lease of sites to individuals shall be evidenced with certificates, signed by the President and Secretary, specifying that such a person is the licensee of such site. A certificate shall vest in the proprietor, his heirs and assigns, a right to such site, for the sole purpose of interment, under the regulations of the Board. No certificate shall be granted to any person who does not produce a receipt from the Treasurer that he has paid for his site in full. The number of gravesites leased by any one individual shall be regulated by the Cemetery Board. It is distinctly understood that all interments in the cemetery properties shall be in strict conformity with the rules of the Roman Catholic Church, and no interment can be made without authority of the Pastor of St. John Catholic Church.

Article 8. Termination of Board member(s). Reason for terminations shall be: (1) non-attendance by member(s) of a minimum of one meeting per year, (2) any Board member(s) that does not fulfill their designated committee duties, (3) transfer of a Board member to another parish. A majority of the Board members present must agree.

 
II. Rules and Regulations

Section 1. Visitors are reminded that the grounds of St. John Catholic Cemetery are sacredly devoted to the interment of the dead, according to the discipline of the Roman Catholic Church and that a strict observation of the decorum which should characterize such a place will be required.

Section 2. All purchase prices of cemetery lots as well as supplemental charges are subject to change as determined by St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board.

Section 3. The cemetery shall be open for admission of visitors everyday during daylight hours or times designated by the Cemetery Board.

Section 4. Children will not be admitted unless attended by an adult responsible for their conduct.

Section 5. Persons with refreshments will not be permitted to enter the grounds unless permission is obtained.

Section 6. No omnibus or sight seeing car will be permitted to enter the grounds unless permission is obtained.

Section 7. No vehicle shall be driven within the cemetery grounds at a speed exceeding ten miles per hour.

Section 8. Heavily laden wagons or trucks will not be permitted to enter the cemetery unless by permission of the Cemetery Board.

Section 9. Animals will not be permitted in the cemetery.

Section 10. No person is permitted to enter or leave the cemetery except through the driveway.

Section 11. No money or reward of any kind shall be paid or given any member or any employee of the Cemetery Board for any personal service or attention.

Section 12. Any person disturbing the quiet and good order of the cemetery by noise or other improper conduct, or any person who shall violate any of the rules and regulations of the cemetery will be compelled instantly to leave the grounds.

Section 13. Except for the purpose of military salute, firearms will not be permitted on the cemetery grounds.

Section 14. All persons are prohibited from writing upon, defacing or injuring any monument or other property in or belonging to the cemetery.

Section 15. All persons are prohibited from plucking any flowers, either wild or cultivated, pruning, injuring or breaking any tree, shrub, or plant, or entering on any individual lot, without leave.

Section 16. Except in cases of emergency, and then only with the express permission of the Cemetery Board, will any one be permitted to work in the cemetery during any other time than the regular working hours of the day.

Section 17. On Sundays no work will be permitted in the cemetery and no monumental materials will be permitted to be delivered to the cemetery.

Section 18. No person will be permitted to work on any monuments, marker, or headstone, without a written permit from the owner or owners of said gravesites.

Section 19. There are no receptacles provided on the cemetery grounds for disposition of rubbish, or offal of any kind, and the throwing of such rubbish or offal upon sites, walks, or drives is prohibited.

Section 20. The placing of chairs or settees upon gravesites is prohibited as it attracts strangers and quite often leads to desecration.

Section 21. If anything is placed on or in any site what shall be deemed offensive, improper or injurious, or which shall violate any rule it will be removed without notice.

Section 22. The Cemetery Board will regard it a favor if any error, carelessness or incivility of employees is promptly reported to the Board. All complaints will be promptly investigated, mistakes rectified, and offending employees promptly disciplined.

Section 23. The Cemetery Board is charged with the execution of these rules and regulations. It is of the utmost importance that there should be a strict observance of all the proprieties due the place, whether embraced in these regulations or not, and no impropriety will be permitted to pass unnoticed. All well-disposed persons will confer a favor by informing the Board of any breach of these rules and regulations that may come under their notice.

Section 24. Before ordering a monument or headstone, site owners are requested to consult the Cemetery Board to ascertain if there be space on the site/sites for the desired monument or headstone.

Section 25. No person will be permitted to erect a monument or headstone on a site without the consent of the site licensee and complying with the rules of the Cemetery Board.

Section 26. Plans for all monumental work must be submitted to the Cemetery Board for approval before contracting the same.

Section 27. All monuments and headstones must be good quality granite, marble or other materials adaptable for such purposes.

Section 28. An official military marker may be placed on the site or on the headstone with the permission of the Cemetery Board.

Section 29. Only one headstone/monument will be permitted on a site and said monument must be placed in the upper center of the site as near as possible.

Section 30. No monument or headstone shall be erected in the cemetery unless it is firmly placed on a suitable foundation of solid masonry or concrete.

Section 31. Foundations will be finished true and level within two inches of the surface of the ground at the lowest point. All stonework shall have the surface next to the foundation bedded off sufficiently true and level to allow every part of the surface to be in contact with the foundation. The use of spawls between base stone and foundations or the removal of any part of the foundation to accommodate irregularities or other defective workmanship in the base stone will not be permitted. Dealer's or Manufacturer's cards or advertisements shall not be cut into or marked on any stone or placed anywhere in the cemetery enclosure.

Section 32. All workmen employed in the erection of any monument or other structure shall be subject to the control and directions of the Cemetery Board and any workman failing to conform to this regulation will not be permitted to work on the cemetery grounds.

Section 33. All contractors doing construction work on any and all monuments and headstones shall carry and pay for all necessary Workmen's Compensation, Public Liability, Automobile and Truck Insurance.

Section 34. Each site licensee shall keep in good repair all stone or monumental work upon his or her site. In case of failure to do so, the Cemetery Board may either repair or remove the same at the site owner's expense.

Section 35. When a monument or headstone is to be removed from the cemetery, representatives must have a written order giving such permission from the site licensees.

 
III. Interments and Funerals

Section 1. All funerals shall be under the direction of a member of the Cemetery Board while on the cemetery grounds.

Section 2. The digging of graves shall be done only by a person or persons authorized by the Cemetery Board.

Section 3. The interments of two bodies in one grave (that is one above the other) will not be permitted, nor shall any grave be opened for a second interment except by permission of the Board.

Section 4. Dis-interments and re-interments must be arranged in advance with the Board. When removals from the cemetery are to be made, a permit from the Board of Health must accompany the application.

Section 5. Removal of the body of any person/cremains buried will not be permitted without the written consent of the site licensee.

 
IV. Sites and Graves

Section 1. A person desiring to lease a site can do so by applying to a member of the Cemetery Board. After selection of the site and payment is made, a receipt will be issued to the licensee.

Section 2. Graves will be sodded all over. The graves will be made level with the lawn. Site work will be overseen by the Cemetery Board or by their representatives.

Section 3. No one except an employee of the Cemetery Board will be permitted to disturb the sod of any site or sites.

Section 4. Graves will be resodded only on order of and at the expense of the site licensee.

Section 5. The site licensee shall have the right to erect proper headstones/monuments or grave covers, strictly subject to the regulations of the Cemetery Board.

Section 6. All persons are prohibited from planting trees, shrubs, flowers, or plants of any kind on sites or graves.

Section 7. No corner stones shall be set except by a member or members of the Cemetery Board.

Section 8. The Cemetery Board will not be responsible for anything of a movable character that may be misplaced, lost or broken.

Section 9. Private fences or enclosures around site/sites are not permitted.

Section 10. Wooden enclosures, trellises, headboards or permanent wooden crosses of any kind or not permitted.

Section 11. Site licensees are prohibited from placing on sites or graves any of the following: toys, cases, boxes, globes, shells, cans, jugs, bottles, and bric-a-brac of any description. Any such articles found on the cemetery grounds will be removed without notice.

Section 12. Floral designs or other decorations will be removed from the site/sites or grave as soon as the flowers become wilted or unsightly, and persons wishing to retain any floral design or decorations must remove them within forty-eight (48) hours. Artificial wreaths or decorations shall be attached to headstones except where the headstones are level with the ground.

Section 13. If any monument or any structure or object whatever, or any inscription be placed in or upon any site which shall be determined by the Board to be offensive, improper or injurious to the appearance of the surrounding sites or grounds, the Cemetery Board shall have the right and it shall be their duty to cause such unsightly structure or object to be removed from the site.

Section 14. A member of the Maintenance Committee will give estimates to site licensees for sodding, grading and repair work of any kind.

Section 15. Payment must be made to the Cemetery Board for any improvements or repair work at the time requested.

Section 16. All certificates when executed by the Cemetery Board shall be construed as simple granting to the site licensee, being the original leasee of the lot conveyed. The leasee has the right to use said site for burial purposes for the interment of him or herself, family member, relatives or descendants of the purchaser. But such burial right shall not be transferable, either by voluntary or involuntary conveyance or by descent or any other person or persons without the express consent of the Board.

Section 17. Site licensees shall not allow interments to be made in their site for remuneration. All interments in the sites shall be restricted to the members of the family and relatives of the site licensees, except, if special permission to the contrary is obtained in writing from the Board.

Section 18. All site licensees are prohibited from selling their site or from transferring the same without the express permission of the Board. If the Board, after an investigation of any individual case, agrees to repurchase a site formerly sold, payment will be made at the original purchase price when the site licensee has conveyed by receipt the site to the Cemetery Board furnishing good and sufficient title approved by said Board.

Section 19. Babies dying as a result of miscarriage, stillbirth or infant death may be buried in the Garden of Angels established by the Cemetery Board. The plot sizes will be 3’ 0" by 2’ 0". The grave shall be marked by a flat stone even with the surface. The stone size shall be 8" by 16" on a 12" minimum deep footing.

Section 20. Cremains may be buried in a regular gravesite under the supervision of a Cemetery Board member. A maximum of two cremains may be interred in one plot.

Section 21. Military markers shall be installed in accordance with the Veterans Administration regulations.

 
V. Mausoleum

The rules and regulations of St. John the Baptist Mausoleum have been designed for the protection of all crypt and niche holders in the mausoleum. They are intended not to restrain but to define a plan for the operation and maintenance of the mausoleum. The Cemetery and Mausoleum Board urges each crypt or niche holder to become familiar with and respect the following provisions.

Section 1. The purchaser of a crypt or niche in St. John the Baptist Mausoleum does not acquire property in the building but only the right to entombment therein.

Section 2. All purchase prices of crypts and niches as well as all supplemental charges are subject to change as determined by St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board.

Section 3. No entombment shall be permitted in the mausoleum until such time as financial arrangements have been approved by the parish office.

Section 4. All human remains must be embalmed and entombment must be made in an approved coffin that complies with the rules and regulations of St. John the Baptist Mausoleum and The Department of Health.

Section 5. Crypts and niches may be used for the entombment of human remains only. A maximum of one entombment and one inurnment is permitted in a single crypt. Only one inurnment can be made in a niche.

Section 6. Assignment or transfer of any crypt or niche space shall not take place without the written consent of St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board and the notarized permission of the original purchaser or his/her heirs. No crypt or niche is for resale for profit.

Section 7. Crypt and niche front inscriptions are limited to the proper names and/or maiden name of the deceased along with the respective dates of birth and death. The size of these inscriptions, as well as the placement on the crypts or niches, will be subject to St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board regulations. Military markers are permissible - 5" x 8" only.

Section 8. Specific areas and approved decoration and/or ornamentation will be designed and approved by St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board. No other decoration will be permitted. This policy is enforced to avoid possible damage to the marble, granite crypt and niche fronts and also not to detract from the inherent beauty of the mausoleum.

Section 9. St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board has approved the placement of specific vases on the crypt and niche fronts. These are to be purchased through the parish office. Only non-perishable flowers or arrangements (silk, dried, artificial, etc.) are permitted in the approved vases. Size of arrangements shall be such that they will not cover any portion of adjoining crypt or niche fronts. No other vases, photographs, ribbons, berries, or non-approved materials are to be placed on the crypt or niche fronts. Any article deemed in violation will be removed and discarded without notice to the owner.

 
VI. Family Estate Mausoleums

Section 1. Individual private mausoleums placed on cemetery grounds shall be constructed on lots so designated. Plans, specifications, construction materials, and location in the lot of such mausoleum shall be subject to the approval of St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board.

Section 2. No walkways, patios or other appurtenant structure will be permitted on the ground surrounding a private mausoleum. No additions or changes will be allowed after the specifications and foundations plan has been submitted to and approved by St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board.

Section 3. All above ground entombments must comply with the regulations from the controlling Department of Health. An approved casket/coffin is required and must be properly sealed. St. John the Baptist Cemetery and Mausoleum Board shall be in possession of a key to any private mausoleum.

Section 4. The purchase price of a private mausoleum lot will include a fee for perpetual care for the future maintenance of the property around the private mausoleum.

 
VII. Legal Descent of Burial Rights

Inasmuch as questions have sometimes arisen as to the rights of kindred of the original purchaser (herein the Purchaser of the right of interment) (herein the Site), after his or her death to burial upon the Site to make these rights more certain and definite, it is hereby declared:

Section 1. That the surviving spouse of the Purchaser shall have the first right of interment on the Site to the exclusion of all other persons.

Section 2. That the Purchaser may, either at the time of purchase or at any time thereafter, execute over his or her hand and seal and duly acknowledged before any officer authorized to take acknowledgements of deeds, an instrument directing who shall be interred upon the Site and depositing said instrument with the Cemetery Board. If the Purchaser shall desire to designate any other person than those of his or her immediate family or kindred, the Purchaser shall first obtain the permission of the Board of Directors and, in event such designation is so made, no person other than the person or persons so designated shall be interred upon the Site. However, if any person or persons so designated do not exercise such right for burial for any reason whatsoever, then the heirs of the Purchaser, in order of kindred shall have the right of interment on the Site.

For purposes of this Legal Descent of Burial Rights, "heirs of the Purchaser" shall mean those individuals who would otherwise have a right to share in the estate of the Purchaser under the intestate succession laws of the State of Indiana.

Section 3. In the event the Purchaser shall not in his or her lifetime have made such designation as to the persons to be interred upon the Site, the heirs of the Purchaser may by an agreement in writing amongst themselves, duly signed and acknowledged before some officer authorized to take acknowledgements of deeds, and deposited with the Cemetery Board, determine who among them shall have the right of burial upon the Site. Such agreement shall be accompanied with satisfactory evidence in writing that the persons signing the same are all the heirs of the Purchaser.

Section 4. In the event the original Purchaser shall not have prior to his or her death designated the person or persons to be interred upon the Site, and in the further event the heirs of the Purchaser shall not have consummated such agreement contemplated in Section 3 above, then the direct lineal descendants of the Purchaser shall, in the order of each of their deaths, but subject to Section 1 above, have the right to be interred upon the Site, until all unoccupied space in the Site shall be filled. In such case, if there are no living lineal descendants of the Purchaser, then the collateral kindred of the Purchaser in the nearest and equal degree of consanguinity, in the order of each of their deaths, shall have the right to be interred upon the Site until the Site shall have been fully occupied.

Section 5. In the event of a dispute or controversy regarding rights of interment on the Site, the determination and decision as to any and all right of burial or the order thereof, the decision of the Board shall be final.

 
VII. Amendments

The rules and regulations of St. John Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum Board may be amended by the Board of Directors in the following manner:

Two members of the Board may submit in writing any amendments. If the amendment is unanimous the amendment shall become effective at that meeting. If further consideration is needed it can be presented at the next board meeting and put to vote. If the amendment or amendments receive a majority of votes it shall become effective.