Did you see our video highlighting a map of the cemeteries within our home state of Tennessee? That video and the accompanying cemetery map shows more than 12,000 cemeteries within Tennessee. Grave Care Business owners need about 3 or 4 cemeteries to begin building a strong small business client list. With so many cemeteries dotting the landscape, there is great availability to quickly build a highly-profitable customer roster.
Strategic Cemetery Maps
Maps of cemeteries are incredibly useful. The cemetery maps we design are used to serve a variety of purposes. Some maps show the geographic location of individual cemeteries while other maps show the locations of individual gravesites within a cemetery. The maps included in this article show geographic location and density data of individual cemeteries in Henry County, Illinois.
Last August, I returned to college to learn the art of Cartography (Map Making). In my studies, I am learning how to make maps using remote sensing instruments such as satellite and drone imagery. I am also learning how to use Ground Penetrating Radar and Magnetometry to make maps below ground level (sub-soil mapping). Maps are tools that can be used to display so much more than simple location data. Maps of cemeteries are valuable tools that facilitate navigation, spatial understanding, decision making, analysis, emergency response, historical documentation, and education.
Henry County, Illinois
One of my subscribers asked for a map showing the cemeteries within their home county of Henry County, Illinois.
A little bit of research on Henry County shows this county is located on the Western edge of Illinois adjacent to Davenport, IA. It is at a similar latitude as Chicago but is on the other side of the state a 2 1/2 hour drive away.
Henry County has a population of almost 50,000 people as of the latest census and has about 823 sq miles of land area.
The maps below were produced with ArcGIS Pro using an original dataset of 171,000 cemeteries across the entire United States. ArcGIS is professional mapping software. With more than 171,000 cemeteries listed in this dataset, confidence is high that most established cemeteries are included. However, no dataset is 100% accurate so some cemeteries might have been missed.
Illinois State Cemetery Map
Geographic location data is shown for cemeteries across all 48 states on the first map. Alaska is partially shown and Puerto Rico is shown in its entirety. At this scale, the data does not reveal much information other than to give an indication just how many cemeteries there are. Of course the icons are not size-representative, but coverage over the entirety of the map is almost uninterrupted.
Within the state of Illinois, there are 6766 cemeteries.
Once all the cemeteries in Illinois were found, Henry County was isolated. 61 cemeteries were found within Henry County’s borders. (Note: Though I did my best to include all the cemeteries within Henry County, a few might have been missed due to improper historical record keeping.)
Generally, I consider that someone starting their own Grave Care Business needs about 3 or 4 cemeteries to begin building a strong client list. With there being 61 cemeteries in Henry County and 6766 within Illinois, there are LOADS of opportunities for anyone wanting to start their own Grave Care Business.
Cemetery Distribution: Henry County, Illinois
Heat Maps are useful in determining the distribution of cemeteries across a wide area. This heat map shows the location of greatest density of cemeteries within the county. Henry County has approximately 50000 residents. With this population density, cemeteries are fairly evenly distributed, but you can see gaps in coverage.
Do you love cemeteries and have you ever thought about starting your own Grave Care Business? I am passionate about the proper upkeep of Cemeteries and I am also passionate about Entrepreneurs who want to start their own business.
Grave Care and Cemetery Density
If you have ever thought about starting a Grave Care Business, please look through our website. We have developed a professionally produced Grave Care Business Course designed to help you Start Your Own Grave Care Business.
I want to say “thank you” to my subscriber in Henry County Illinois who asked for a map of the cemeteries in their home county.
If you would like a map of the cemeteries where you live, please subscribe and leave a comment with your home state and county and I will make a map for you, too.
Start a Grave Care Business
Once again, my name is Keith. If you want to learn more about the Grave Care Business course, the website address is: www.GraveCareBusiness.com
About Keith: Keith is passionate about cemeteries and the proper upkeep of our nation’s burial grounds. For more than 20 years, he has fought for our cemeteries to be well-maintained, hallowed grounds. Keith believes there are too many neglected cemeteries that fall into disrepair. Neglected cemeteries are at risk of being vandalized. Keith is also passionate to help entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in their own lives by starting their own businesses.
In August of last year, Keith returned to school to earn a degree in GIS (Map Making). His goal is to advance our understanding of spatial relationships within cemeteries.
