Methodology

I have added a small section to my previous post briefly summarising the articles I posted links to, so it provides at least an idea of what Victorians attitudes and beliefs were for those who don't have time to go to the links. This post will be dedicated to outlining the methodology I will be utilizing in my research. Three areas of focus were talked about in my first post, "Beginning My Research." The first area of focus is Victorian burial trends, the second is creating an electronic database and map, and the third is to make this research relevant to the community. Below I will flesh out exactly how I plan to complete these areas of interest. Throughout my research I will be consistently updating my methodology as what I plan to do, and what I actually do will likely change a little. Warning, this post may be a little dry but I will keep it as short and simple as I can, while still being clear about how I am going to do my research.

To help complete my first area of interest, I will be conducting an in-depth literature review to discover both what Victorian burial trends are, and the history of the church so I can any results, I will then analyse what burial trends are found at St. Stephen's. In my initial research I have found a number of resources that mention Victorian era memorials, cemeteries, or commemoration practices. I have also located information on the history of St. Stephen’s Cemetery via independently published books and preliminary permission to access the Church’s historical registers, maps, and other documents. Once the literature review has concluded and trends have been identified, analysis of the cemetery will take place while I am documenting the burials and after the database has been completed.

Paper Map of St. Stephen's Cemetery.

I will use Microsoft Access to create an electronic database containing all available information on Victorian burials present in the cemetery. Information that will be incorporated into the database includes: plot number; number of individuals; name(s) of the deceased; birth and death dates of the deceased; age of the deceased; additional inscriptions on tombstone; type of tombstone (e.g. tablet, column); tombstone materials; tombstone motifs; type of burial enclosure (e.g. mausoleum, fence, stone boundary); plot type (i.e. individual or family); and any additional notes (e.g. occupation). The OCSV has a set typology for monuments that I will be utilizing for this database. In addition to creating my own database of Victorian era burials, I will be consulting an electronic database of burials at St. Stephen’s Cemetery completed by the OCSV. This database was completed in 1994, and so will likely be useful for inscriptions that are no longer legible. I am sure that at least some inscriptions that are eroded away today were legible in 1994. I will also be cross-checking my own database with this one to ensure I have not missed any pertinent information or made any errors.


In addition to the database, I will be creating an electronic map of all Victorian era burials in the cemetery (the burials to the north and in front of the Church). A small paper map (shown above) will be my base point for creating this electronic map. Inscriptions and photographs of the monuments will be uploaded and attached to the appropriate plot on the map. If possible, software enabling 3D views of the photographs will be experimented with to facilitate a more realistic rendering of the burials. I have emailed a student who has worked with this type of software, so fingers crossed it will work for this project!

The most important part of this project, for me, is to make this research relevant to the community. I find that academic research often takes the information it needs from communities and gives very little, if nothing, back. It is my intent to give something back to the communities I am working with. I have spoken to the custodian and rector from St. Stephen’s Anglican Church and the president of the OCSV to help reach this goal. At this point, I have not been provided with any concrete tasks to complete at St. Stephen’s, although updating maps and an old Church database have been mentioned briefly. Throughout my research, I will be regularly updating my progress on this blog. I have already provided the URL to the OCSV, and will be emailing it to the curator from St. Stephen's shortly. I originally intended to provide it to him in person, but I feel I should get it to him soon as I already have a few posts. It is my hope that anyone interested from the Church or community will follow my progress on this blog as it occurs. I will also be providing St. Stephen’s Anglican Church with a paper to be completed by March of 2014. Hopefully I will able to upload the database and map that I have made online. This will allow anyone from the community to search the database easily and to have access to photographs and plot locations from the map. Discussion with the OCSV has brought up the possibility of expanding their webpage on St. Stephen’s Cemetery, as it is currently sparse. Overall, I am open to any suggestions and requests St. Stephen’s and the OCSV may have in regards to historical related duties and tasks. My goal with this area of focus is to have my research contribute to and benefit the communities in which I am working.

Sorry about how dry that was, but I would like to be completely transparent about what I am doing, and how and why I am doing it. This post covers my planned 'how' so I wanted to make sure it was thorough.