A
roadside memorial is a marker that usually commemorates a
site where a person died suddenly and unexpectedly, away from home.
Unlike a grave site headstone, which marks where a body is laid, the
memorial marks the last place on earth where a person was alive -
although in the past travelers were, out of necessity, often buried
where they fell. Usually the memorial is created and maintained by family members or friends of the person who died. Many people find them unsightly and also a distraction to drivers.
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| Laos roadside memorial - LINK |
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| SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany -- This shrine was built to honor the
Virgin Mary, whom residents say helped them during times of need. Photo credit: Iris Reiff - LINK |
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| Photo credit: ©2011. Keith Dannemiller - LINK |
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| Highway 63 A roadside memorial near the Syncrude Canada site, approximately 30km north of Fort McMurray. Photo credit: Amanda Richardson - LINK |
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| Flowers at a roadside in memorial in Abbotsford, B.C. Photo credit: Stuart Davis - LINK |
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| Austrian roadside memorial - LINK |
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| This roadside shrine or animita is south of Santiago, Chile. It has
been there for perhaps 50 years and is devoted to the memory of a
young handicapped boy who was cruelly killed. Photo by kimbar/very busy, in and out on Flickr |
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| Roadside shrine in New Mexico- LINK |
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| Funeral Crosses at Kilmore, Co. Wexford. These crosses
are the continuation of a custom dating back to the 1100s. Upon every
funeral at the local cemetery, a cross is placed under a tree in memory
of the deceased. Those attending the funeral pause in respectful silence
as the cross is placed with the others. This was traditionally done by
one of the mourners, but is now done by the undertaker, who
automatically brings two crosses for all funerals in Kilmore, the other
being for the grave. Photo by Gale on Flickr |
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| Roadside shrine in Greece - LINK |
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| Roadside shrine marks a traffic fatality in Greece - LINK |
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| Ghost bikes are small and somber memorials for bicyclists who are killed or hit on
the street. A bicycle is painted all white and locked to a street sign
near the crash site, accompanied by a small plaque. They serve as
reminders of the tragedy that took place on an otherwise anonymous
street corner, and as quiet statements in support of cyclists' right to
safe travel. - LINK |
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| Roadside shrines in Gythio, Peloponnese - LINK |
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| This pair of ornamental steel crosses mark hte deathplace of two individuals at the intersection of FM 70 and CR 51 just South of Corpus Christi, Texas - LINK |
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