Closing a Chapter... 12 years later

The BROCK monument:  Woodlawn Cemetery, Block O, Lot 324

Today we finally reinstalled the last of the granite obelisks we identified as unsafe at Woodlawn in 1998.  The Brock monument (not a relation, unfortunately, to the Canadian/British hero who defeated the invading Americans in the War of 1812 and kept Canada its own country), is a massive granite spire which was all-too-ready to fall (requiring only the pressure of my index finger to start the spire moving) during the first Safety Survey of Woodlawn Cemetery.  In 1998, I was charged with identifying the twenty most dangerous monuments in the cemetery...  for us to target for repair.  What we found, however, was alarming:  94 monuments required only minor contact to create movement...  and 6 of those were so dangerous (ready to fall under the pressure of only a pinkie finger) that they had to be taken down immediately.
We ended up repairing as many as possible in situ, but had to take down and place in storage ~40 massive granite spires.  Given the number of other monuments requiring repair (identified as Safety/Priority Class 2 or 3...  and later 4 & 5), and the limited resources available (especially backhoe time, concrete for massive monolithic foundations, etc), we agreed to a goal of reinstalling 3 granite spires each year...
This year, with a Rotary Hammer Drill (thanks Helmut & Robbo!), a dedicated Monument Assistant (Kate!), and lots of backhoe time,  we were able to finish off the last 10...  in addition to 9 others which had become a priority in the intervening years.

The BROCK monument in 1998:  leaning heavily, resting on a single small stone under one corner without a foundation, unsealed and not pinned...

Taking down the dangerous spire was a mammoth undertaking....

It was cold...  but the snow was a good cushion just in case anything slipped...

There's still some work to do in Block F, with S/P Class 2 monuments that include a number of tall granite spires,  but the 1998 removals are all out of storage and we have reinstalled all of the granite monuments which had fallen in the 1970s, 80s and 90's.

The Brock monument reinstalled...  with full foundation (below the 4' frost line), with each layer bedded and set and with a  450mm long pin of 13mm diameter stainless steel securing the spire from ever being a danger again.  (Note that the pin is drilled to fit the upper hole which is in dry-mode {without epoxy} such that the monument can be lifted apart...  it just cannot be pushed down or fall accidentally:  reversibility is vital for good conservation work!)