You are invited to join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDSTM attempt to break a title for the most photos of gravestones uploaded to a bespoke (custom) platform in 24 hours!
We would love to have you participate! After all, it isn’t every day you get a chance to say you helped break a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title!
The project is called Rescuing Our Roots and the purpose is to help others find their ancestors and grow their family trees by taking GPS-linked photos of gravestones with the BillionGraves app.
Here are the steps in a nutshell:
1) Register for the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt at BillionGraves.com/rescue
2) Download the BillionGraves app from the app store on your smartphone, set up an account, and log in.
3) Take photos of headstones anywhere in the world using the BillionGraves app.
4) On June 25th, go to the main screen of the app, tap “photos”, and then press the “upload” button!
If 10,000 people upload at least 1 photo on the app within 24 hours, we will break a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title!
It is already the world’s largest BillionGraves project!
You MUST be signed up through BillionGraves.com/Rescue for your participation to count toward the Guinness World Records title.
There is a countdown clock at BillionGraves.com/Rescue so you can be sure you are uploading during the correct time zone (Central Daylight Time in the US).
Rescuing Our Roots
The Rescuing Our Roots project began when Joseph Miller, a local leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cedar Rapids, Iowa discovered that there were as many as 200,000 people in his home state that were buried before 1880 when birth and death records were not yet required. That means that their gravestone may be the only record on Earth!
Miller encouraged friends and family to use the BillionGraves app to take photos of all the gravestones in their area. Before long, the project grew far beyond Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It spread throughout the state of Iowa, into the Midwest, the USA, and now around the world!
Volunteers are participating from Ireland to India, from Pakistan to Poland, and from Africa to Argentina.
Invite a Friend! Invite a Neighbor!
10,000 participants is a LOT! We need YOU, and we need some people that you know to help reach the goal.
Here are some ideas of people that you could invite to take at least one photo with the BillionGraves app and upload it on June 25th:
- Your spouse
- Your friend
- Your siblings
- Your partner
- Your grandma!
- Your kids
- Your neighbor
- Your Facebook & Instagram friends
- Your hairdresser
- Your babysitter
- Your dog sitter!
- Your church leaders
- Your nieces and nephews
- Your cousins
- Your co-workers
- Your mayor
- Your mail delivery person
- Your local cemetery manager
- The guy who mows the lawn at your local cemetery
An Uber Driver Promoting the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS Attempt!
William Howell is an Uber driver with a cause! If you book an Uber ride with Howell, you could expect to find a flyer about the Rescuing Our Roots GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt in the backseat pockets of his vehicle.
And one of the first things Howell would be likely to ask you is, “Would you like to be part of a world record?” After learning all about it, if you answered “Yes” then you could scan this QR code from the flyer to easily register for the project:
Go ahead, scan it now! 🙂
Howell estimates that about 10 out of 15 of his passengers join the project.
Howell said that when he asked one of his Uber riders if he would be interested in helping to set a world record, the man became very quiet.
Howell said, “When he went quiet on me, I thought he wasn’t interested. But he had been learning to use the BillionGraves app and had found a picture of his long-lost uncle’s gravestone.” Aww!
When Howell has some downtime between riders, he finds other ways to share his enthusiasm about the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt. One day he stopped at the Manchester, Iowa city hall to ask for information about an abandoned cemetery. He discovered that the cemetery is now managed by the city.
Howell then taught the staff members at the city hall how to use the BillionGraves app. They now plan to use the BillionGraves app to manage all their cemeteries and update the cemetery maps with new burials as they occur.
Hey, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
The Honoring Our Veterans organization in Cedar Rapids, Iowa places flags on Veteran’s gravestones each year on Memorial Day. This year they partnered with Rescuing Our Roots volunteers to help with the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS effort.
Together, they placed 8,000 flags and took thousands of gravestone photos with the BillionGraves app at Cedar Memorial Cemetery and other area cemeteries.
Hey, Waverly, Iowa, USA!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
Thanks to the great group that helped document headstones at Harlington Cemetery in Waverly, Iowa! There were 50 adults plus children taking photos!
They are signed up to participate in our record-setting endeavor! Are you? Sign up today at billiongraves.com/rescue!
Susan Sims, Regional Communications Director, said, “This is a very old cemetery, and many headstones were already worn away and illegible.” Taking GPS-linked photos helps preserve memories for generations to come.
Hey, Cape Girardeau, Missouri, USA!
Join an Official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
We can’t believe it – we’re now on billboards!
Rescuing Our Roots‘ attempt to break a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title is being advertised on 5 billboards in southeast Missouri. But the project doesn’t stop there – we need volunteers from around the world!
Hey, BillionGraves Top Contributors!
Join an Official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
Wow! Look what some of BillionGraves’ top contributors are doing to help with the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
This image shows the top 10 contributors for photos and for transcriptions. Click HERE to see the top 50. The Top Contributors list is updated daily.
If you are a top BillionGraves contributor, and you haven’t joined the Rescuing Our Roots project yet, please click HERE to join. We need YOUR help to break a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title!
Hey, Chicago, Illinois, USA!
Join an Official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS Attempt!
Mark Bennett contacted BillionGraves to say, “I am retired and have been collecting images and transcribing for about 7 -8 years, mainly in the Chicago area. I am currently on the list of top contributors for the goal of 1 million images uploaded and hope to keep going as we get nice summer weather.
Bennett has taken roughly 23k images and completed 23k transcriptions. Way to go!
Hey, France!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
The Gailushas family took the Rescuing Our Roots project to the American Cemetery in Normandy, France – 4,200 miles away from their home in Iowa – where they honored Veterans buried on distant shores by using the BillionGraves app to take photos of their gravestones.
As photos are taken with the BillionGraves app, GPS coordinates are automatically added to each photo, and the gravesites are plotted on a map of the cemetery, making it easy for visitors to find their ancestors and loved ones.
The Gailushas family also got to listen to stories told by the Veteran’s descendants.
The Gailushas family members are not the only ones promoting the Rescuing Our Roots GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt in France.
Katherine Holmes, who lives near Perpignan, France, presented the Rescuing Our Roots project to her village council to encourage her community to get involved in the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt.
Hey Iceland!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
And the award for the farthest cemetery excursion goes to the Daniels family! They took Rescuing Our Roots from Iowa to Iceland (3,148 miles away)! Drumroll, please!
Hey, FamilySearch!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
Larry Telford came all the way from the Salt Lake City, Utah area to participate in a Rescuing Our Roots project in Iowa!
Telford, a FamilySearch Program Manager, has spent years working his way through cemeteries to record the headstone information. While in Iowa, Larry spent time recording headstones in the Upper Spring Grove Cemetery in Buchanan County, Iowa.
He shared his knowledge and passion for connecting people to their relatives with community members. Telford even used the FamilySearch website to show how he is distantly related to several of the families buried in the Upper Spring Grove Cemetery.
FamilySearch is one of the official sponsors of the Rescuing Our Roots project. Learn more on the FamilySearch blog by clicking HERE.
Hey, JustServe Volunteers!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
JustServe.org is a website where organizations in need of volunteers post projects and volunteers find opportunities to serve others to enhance the quality of life in their communities.
The Rescuing Our Roots GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt project is currently listed nationwide on JustServe in the following nations and languages:
- USA – English
- USA – Spanish
- Canada – English
- Canada – French
- Australia – English
- Mexico – Spanish
- Argentina – Spanish
- Spain – Spanish
- Puerto Rico – English
- Puerto Rico – Spanish
Hey, MyHeritage Fans!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
BillionGraves’ partner, MyHeritage, is one of the sponsors of the Rescuing Our Roots project.
With nearly 20 billion international records, 53 million family trees, and astounding DNA technology, MyHeritage is the leading global platform for family history.
In 2019, MyHeritage used the BillionGraves app to photograph all of Israel’s gravestones, becoming the first nation in the world to document all of their country’s cemeteries (click HERE to learn more).
Hey, Families! Moms, Dads, Kids!
Join an official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
Anyone old enough to take a photo with a phone is invited to take part in the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt!
Isn’t this impressive!? Lincoln Crump took gravestone photos with her baby strapped on in an infant carrier! She makes it look easy!
Crump said, “Our family belongs to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We love people and making family connections. Participating in BillionGraves has allowed us to connect with those who have come before us and learn some neat family stories. Learning of their life and challenges helps us remember our heritage.”
(By the way, did you notice that she is taking the photo upside down? In this case, it is a great idea! It keeps her shadow, on this sunny day, from casting over the gravestone information. Volunteer transcribers can easily rotate her photo when they view the image to record the names and dates.)
Please be sure everyone has their own BillionGraves account when they upload their photos. The GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt will be counting the number of participants. We need 10,000 people to upload at least one photo on June 25th!
How to Take Photos with the BillionGraves App
This video explains how to take photos with the BillionGraves app.
- Download the BillionGraves app to your smartphone from your app store.
- Create a free account on the app or at BillionGraves.com.
- Open the BillionGraves app as soon as you arrive at the cemetery since the GPS feature will work best if the app has about 5 minutes to connect before you begin taking photos, especially if you are taking photos in a remote area.
- At the cemetery, check the bottom of your screen to see if the name of the cemetery matches your current location. If the wrong cemetery name is listed, tap on it, and then select the correct cemetery name.
- From the main screen of the app, tap on “take pictures” to begin taking photos in your local cemetery. The GPS coordinates will be recorded automatically.
- Go up and down the rows, taking pictures of each gravestone until you have completed an entire section or the entire cemetery. Keep moving at a quick pace. If you take 1 photo every 15 seconds you will have taken almost 250 photos in an hour!
- If you are working with another person, leap-frog over each other’s rows until you have completed a section.
- When you are finished, connect to Wi-Fi and plug in your phone. From the main screen of the BillionGraves app, tap on “photos”. When the orange button that says “upload” appears, tap on it to submit your gravestone photos.
- Repeat! 🙂
Join the World’s Largest BillionGraves Project!
Taking photos of gravestones with the BillionGraves app on your smartphone is easy! Click HERE to get started. Join the project, set up an account, and then click on “find a cemetery”.
You are welcome to do this at your own convenience, no permission from us is needed. If you still have questions after you have clicked on the link to get started, you can email us at Volunteer@BillionGraves.com. We’ll be happy to help you!
Are you planning a group service project? Email us at Volunteer@BillionGraves.com for more resources. We will help you find a cemetery that still needs to have photos taken.
Let’s Go Break a Record!!!
Cathy Wallace
