1. What are the hours of the cemetery?
Oxford Cemetery is open from dawn until dusk.
2. Can I walk my dog in the cemetery?
Pets are not permitted on the grounds of Oxford Cemetery proper. Dogs may be walked on the property adjacent to the entrance lane up to the Cemetery gates, but not within the gates. Pets must always be under the control of their owner or handler.
3. What is Oxford Cemetery, Inc.?
Oxford Cemetery, Inc. is a 501-C-13 Maryland Corporation that exists to operate and manage the Oxford Cemetery for the purpose of providing a peaceful and serene sepulcher for the remains or cremated remains of human beings and the cremated remains of a family pet(s) buried with their owner.
4. How is the cemetery managed?
The Cemetery is managed by a volunteer Board of Directors which meets annually for the transaction of necessary business and for the election of officers. It also meets during the year as needed for the transaction of business. These meetings may be held in person or by any electronic form necessary and are closed to the public.
It is also overseen by the Maryland Board of Cemetery Oversight, which reviews yearly, the maintenance trust funds for the cemetery. The Cemetery Board also employs a licensed cemeterian(s) to assist in the operation of the cemetery.
5. Does the cemetery charge each family a yearly fee for the care and upkeep of the cemetery?
No. When a lot or niche is purchased at the Cemetery, a portion of that fee is put into a perpetual care fund.
6. What does “perpetual care” mean and include?
“Perpetual care” means that Oxford Cemetery, Inc. provides general landscaping and property maintenance for the Oxford Cemetery proper. The Cemetery is mowed regularly, and its landscape is kept in a reasonable state of care. This amenity does not include intricate attention to specific individual gravesites. It is the family’s responsibility to weed and care for the area immediately surrounding the markers and/or monument on their lot.
7. What are the planting requirements for the cemetery?
Generally, the Cemetery Board oversees all plantings at Oxford Cemetery, and a request must be made to the Board if considering adding plantings to a grave or family lot. Specific regulations are found in the Oxford Cemetery Rules and Regulations Booklet. You can access the booklet by going to the Homepage and clicking on the button in the upper-righthand corner.
8. Can I place other personal memorial grave markings at Oxford Cemetery?
Statues, symbols, flags, etc. are allowed at the Cemetery by Board permission only. Again, a request must be made to the Board for these additions. Specifics are found in the Rules and Regulations booklet as to the placement and removal of these objects.
9. Can holiday decorations be placed on graves at the cemetery?
Yes, they can, however, December décor must be removed by February 1st, Valentine décor removed by April 1st, and Easter décor must be removed by May 1st. The cemetery reserves the right to remove any decorations left in Oxford Cemetery after these dates.
10. What are the memorialization requirements?
Memorialization requirements differ in the different sections of the Cemetery. Please refer to the Oxford Cemetery Rules and Regulations booklet.
11. How many people can be buried in one grave at Oxford Cemetery?
There can be one traditional burial and one cremain burial, or two cremain burials per grave at Oxford Cemetery.
Two cremain urns can be placed per niche in the columbaria.
12. Can pets be buried at the cemetery?
Cremated remains of the family pet(s) must be placed in the casket or urn of the owner, in the outer burial container, or on top of the outer burial container in a permanent container under the guidance of the Oxford Cemeterian. Cremated remains of pets may not be placed in an individual grave or niche without the remains or cremated remains of its owner.
No information about the pet(s) may be inscribed on a separate marker or on the owner’s grave marker.
13. Must an outer burial container (burial vault) be used for interment and/or inurnment at Oxford Cemetery?
Yes. Either an outer burial container or in the case of a cremation, a permanent style urn (bronze, steel, granite, marble, or heavy man-made plastic) or urn vault is required at every burial in Oxford Cemetery.
14. Can cremains be spread on a family lot or in the waters surrounding the cemetery?
Cremains may not be spread on any grave in the Cemetery or on the grounds or waters adjacent to the Cemetery.
Additionally. the federal Clean Water Act requires that cremated remains be scattered at least three nautical miles from land. If the container will not easily decompose, it must be disposed of separately. The EPA does not permit scattering at beaches or in wading pools by the sea. Finally, you must notify the EPA within 30 days of scattering ashes at sea.
The Clean Water Act also governs scattering in inland waters such as rivers or lakes. For inland water burial, you may be legally required to obtain a permit from the state agency that manages the waterway.
For more information, including the contact information for the EPA representative in Maryland, see Burial of Human Remains at Sea on the EPA website.
15. Can I sell my grave space or any part of my family lot?
If a family desires to sell a grave space, lot, or columbarium niche, the Cemetery has the right of first refusal to repurchase the same at the original price paid by the family, provided there has been no burial or inurnment therein. If a memorial marker, bench, or planting (such as a tree or bush) has been placed on a lot, it must be removed by the family, at their expense, prior to resale. In the case of a lettered columbarium niche cover, the niche cover must be replaced with a blank at the family’s expense.