Cemetery - The Reformed Dutch Church of Claverack

The Reformed Dutch Church of Claverack spans 12.7 acres across the property and has gravestones that date from the 18^th century to the present. To the immediate west of the church are several stone vaults built into the rise.

There are several important individuals buried in the cemetery. These individuals were famous both locally and nationally…figures such as General Robert Van Rensselaer (Revolutionary War general), Henry Van Tassel (served in three wars), and so many others. A walking tour has been designed to learn about our local history. Take the tour below, or hard copy brochures are available at the church’s Christian Education Building.

Cemetery Walking Tour

The Reformed Dutch Church in Claverack cemetery

2024 Cemetery Board of Trustees

James O’Neill – Chairman of the Board of Trustees
James Mackerer – Treasurer and Secretary
Bob Weinman
James Alvarez
Elizabeth Scott

Cemetery Instructions

Transcribed in 2001-2003 by Andrea Mastrianni, Church Organist

Cemetery Insructions

This transcription of the graves in the cemetery of the Ref. Dutch Church of Claverack, NY was primarily taken from my own scrutiny of the stones as they appeared from the summer of 2001 through the summer of 2003. I also used the August 1935 transcription by Minnie Cowen as a cross-reference to my findings. I discovered many older stones which did not appear in Ms. Cowen’s transcription, and there were several stones which she read which were no longer readable or even present in the graveyard. In cases where I was unable to read the stones, I used Ms. Cowen’s transcription. I also used baptismal and marriage records to confirm many of the questionable names and dates.

To the best of my knowledge, I have read and mapped out every readable stone. There are several names on my list which were derived from three possible sources, and these names do not have a section or row because I could not find them. The sources were:

An “Old Burying Ground Map” located in the Cemetery Room of the Christian Ed. Building
Burial records in the possession of Hank Lauer
The 1935 transcription by Minnie Cowen

My cross-referencing sources were:

“Family Tree Maker’s Family Archives CD: Marriage Index: Selected Areas of NY, 1639-1916.”
“Familysearch.com”: baptismal records taken from the Mormon collection.

How to use the Index

There are four parts to this index. Last Name, Maiden Name (Nee), Section/Row, and Maps of Cemetery. The database has been sorted alphabetically or numerically by each heading. You need to look up the last name of your ancestor, in the first one or two parts of the index and read through the chart until you see the columns entitled Row/Lot. You will find that each row is made up of a combination of letters:

The first letter refers to the Section of the cemetery. I loosely based each section on its geographical location, namely:

The second letter or set of letters refers to the Row within each section. All of the A rows start with the row closest to the church in each section, and the rows move alphabetically outward. Markers have been placed starting with the Southern-most grave in each row. The “Lot” number starts at the South end of each row.

Example: row WA lot: 3 means: “West Section, Row A, 3rd gravestone from the south (the parking lot is “south” of the church. See Map)
The fields of the database are “Last Name”, “First Name”, “Nee” (Maiden name of wife, if known), “m/d B” (Month/ Day of Birth), “YOB” (Year of Birth), “m/d D” (Month /Day of Death), “YOD” (Year of Death), “(Cross Ref.)” (Generally info as it appears on stone is not in parentheses — other info I discovered through cross-referencing is in parentheses.)

View Cemetery Map

Cemetery Burial Research