In New York City, cemeteries are large and anonymous, surrounded by high walls and fences, seldom seen or visited. Down here in the farm country of northern Virginia, it's quite different. The gravesite in this picture is in a cemetery in a churchyard just north of the Bull Run battlefield. As you can see, it's tended by friends and relatives who still cherish the memory.

On our road, about five houses to the north of us, there's a cemetery along the side of the road, at the front of the property. We finally met up with the owner of the property and he told us the story. It turns out that the property was owned by his wife's mother's family, dating back quite a ways. He explained that the graves date back before the Civil War. He showed us how the cemetery was laid out. One section for the family, and one section for the slaves. He also showed us one house on the property that predates the Revolutionary War.

But now, as developers rush to plant thousands of identical houses on tiny properties, I wonder how much of this history will remain. In a new development, that sprung up near us, we saw a small outbuilding, built of stone, obviously quite old. Something that could easily have been preserved, given that the new house is on a ten acre property. Unfortunately, the new owners chose to remove it.