Cemeteries
Common
East Union
Lakeview
Skidmore
Sidelinger
Town of Union Cemetery
Rules and Regulations
Article 1: Lots or plots are available and may be purchased as follows, by…
Common… (Soule Annex only) residents only of the Town of Union, for a 3-year period following the deed dated July 16, 2006. After which time (July 17, 2009) the lots or plots (1 person grave) may be purchased by residents or taxpayers of the Town of Union for burial of their loved ones.
East Union…residents and taxpayers of the Towns of Union and South Hope, for burial of their loved ones. (The area to be considered as South Hope is that part of Hope, South of the Alford Lake Road Intersection with Route # 235 easterly to the sharp curve on the Gillette Road.
Lakeview… (Robbins/Merrill annexes) residents and taxpayers of the Town of Union for burial of their loved ones.
Skidmore… (Blake Annex only) residents or taxpayers of the Towns of Union, Washington and Appleton, for burial of their loved ones.
Sidelinger… (Full capacity) N/A
Article 2: Sale of lots or plots to be by the cemetery director(s) or their agents. Burial lots may not be resold and or transfers are not allowed without written notification of intent to the Cemetery Director(s) and prior approval of the Cemetery Director(s) and a majority vote of the Board of Selectmen.”
Article 3: Plot (each individual grave) size varies depending on cemetery.
I.E. Common annex, Skidmore annex and East Union are generally 4’x 10’with some exceptions, Lakeview (i.e. Robbins and Merrill annexes) is 5’x10’. Cost of each individual plot (grave) is $500.00 to be paid at the time of sale.
Article 4: Money from the sale of lots or plots will be divided 80% for perpetual care of that lot or plot, the interest of which, together with the remaining 20% will be used for general maintenance of the Town of Union cemeteries.
Article 5: “Notification” is “required” for “all” full burials and cremations (i.e. funeral homes or individuals interring cremation remains). All burials and cremations are to be under the direction of the Cemetery Director(s) or their agents.
Article 6: Necessary permits as may be required by the State shall be furnished before burial.
Article 7: With the exception of cremation remains, all burials must be in a concrete, fiberglass or other approved vaults used for such burials.
Article 8: All monuments to be set on cement foundations by a “Monument Setter” and the bottom of the foundation is to be 4’ feet below ground level. All headstones/footstones are to be set by a “Monument Setter” and must have at least 1’ ft of good drainage material (i.e. crushed rock) below ground level for such headstone/footstone to rest upon.
Note: Special Rule that applies to Merrill Annex only, is as follows: All memorial stones shall be set flush with the ground and on a cement foundation as specified above.
Article 9: No wood crosses, wood blocks, cement or composition stones shall be allowed in Town of Union cemeteries, for the purpose of marking said graves (i.e. in the place of headstone/footstone or monuments).
Article 10: To enable location of site boundaries and to avoid damage to existing graves, interments will not occur when the ground is covered by snow in the Town of Union cemeteries. All Town of Union Cemeteries will be closed annually from November 1st to April 15th. During this period burials are not allowed without written notification of intent to the Cemetery Directors(s) and prior approval of the Cemetery Director(s) and a majority vote of the Board of Selectmen.
Article 11: NO PETS are allowed in the Town of Union Cemeteries! With the exception of service dogs.
Article 12: “Small” Shrubs (under 6’ft. in height) are allowed so long as they are not imposing on other plots or visibly covering the stones or monuments! All shrubs will be the owner’s responsibility to keep trimmed to a neat appearance and the appropriate size. “If they are not kept maintained they will be removed”.
Article 13: Flowers may be placed in the ground, though it is “strongly” recommended to place within 1’ ft. of stone or monument to help facilitate proper maintenance of the cemeteries.
Article 14: All baskets, vases, artificial flowers, and wreaths are to be removed before April 15th annually. After which date they may be removed by cemetery workers to allow for cemetery clean up work to begin.
Article 15: American flags will be placed on each Veterans grave before Memorial Day each year.
Article 16: Trash from cemeteries must be placed in receptacles as furnished by the cemetery or carried out. No Dumping will be permitted within or around cemetery boundaries! Please help to keep our cemeteries neat!
Article 17: These rules, regulations and prices pertaining to all Town of Union cemeteries, may be subject to change by a majority vote of the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Union, Maine.
“Thank You for your cooperation with staying in compliance with the above named rules and regulations!”
Town of Union Cemetery Rules and Regulations were adopted by the Board of Selectmen on August 7, 2007
Article 2 was revised May 15, 2012 per Board of Selectmen.