'Mystery' gravestone pops up in Lancaster City

by: Evan Popalis

Posted: Aug 21, 2023 / 06:17 PM EDT

Updated: Aug 21, 2023 / 06:17 PM EDT

LANCASTER, Pa. (WHTM) – A mystery gravestone popped up in Lancaster City. There’s no record of Ann E. Graham having lived in Lancaster from 1912-1978. Police now have the gravestone.

“Someone had called in that someone had discarded this gravestone in their backyard area behind their apartment complex,” said Sgt. Todd Grager of Lancaster City Police.

The stone was purchased at Haldy Keener Memorials in Willow Street. The company has been around for over 100 years. They found the document related to the purchasing of the stone in the basement of their facility. It shows who was close to Ann Graham.

“The person who signed for it was Edith A. Moore,” a memorial consultant for Haldy Keener, Dee Steele said.

The stone was made in 1979 and appeared destined for Jamaica. However, the stone remains in incredible condition.

“There’s nothing on the stone from what we can see that would be moss or lichens or anything like that,” Steele said.

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It’s not set in stone but Steele says it could have been kept in a safe place until it was supposed to be moved out of the country.

“A good theory would be that it was stored in hopes of sometime taking it to Jamaica,” Steele said.

So what are the next steps in finding out more about the stone’s history?

“To us the bigger concern would be to get it back to the family of Ann Graham,” Lancaster police Sgt. Grager said

Grager says that Lancaster Police sees no evidence that there is any crime involved with the gravestone.

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'Mystery' gravestone pops up in Lancaster City