There is no better way to connect with the history of a place than to visit its cemetery. Indeed, when Vermont was first settled in the 1700s one of the first signs of community life was the creation of a cemetery. Many of these early cemeteries still exist today, and a visit to these old burial grounds can tell us a lot about life in Vermont at the time. While most Vermonters will visit a cemetery at one time or another, many people do not realize that most of Vermont’s cemeteries are managed by volunteer boards. There are over 1,900 cemeteries in Vermont, and we ask a lot of our cemetery commissioners and cemetery associations. The laws governing Vermont’s cemeteries are complex. They are meant to protect the public health and safety, and also seek to ensure that the individuals who have bought plots and families who have loved ones buried in the cemetery, have a reasonable guarantee that the cemetery will be maintained into the future. With this publication we hope to assist the many volunteers who oversee our cemeteries by explaining the various rules and requirements that apply to burials and cemeteries in Vermont.