By Nancy Young
Enquirer contributor

HANOVER TOWNSHIP - Seventy-five years ago, it was common practice for cemetery caretakers to painstakingly log the name and location of every person buried, as well as every plot purchase. Allowances weren't made for deterioration of the ink and paper the logs were written on, for handwriting that was less than perfectly legible, and for families selling off their plots or portions of their plots without notifying the cemetery.

Millville Cemetery in Hanover Township was no exception, which is why township trustees and Miami University staff are collaborating on a project to update cemetery records for the 21st century.

"Hanover Township has three cemeteries but only Millville Cemetery, opened in 1930, is still actively in use," says trustee Tim Derickson.

He says there were some 5,000 people buried there.

"Situations and disputes with local families have recently come up that made us realize we must computerize our records, but township funds aren't available for such a time-consuming task," he says.

Enter Miami University professor Phil Russo and Miami's Center for Public Management and Regional Affairs.