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[–] 5322109? 0 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago 

That could definitely explain it. It was not uncommon for only people who were members in good standing of the local church at death to be allowed to be buried in the graveyard with a large marker. It could also be that they were too poor to afford much of one.

You also have stuff like what happened in some places during the Civil War. During occupation, many gravestones were damaged or just plain knocked down during fighting, to make room for artillery to move or set up, reused for building temporary fortifications, or to allow encampments in place. Sometimes they were replaced with just little markers and sometimes not at all.

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[–] IggyReilly 0 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago 

I just remember my grandma telling me that since we were Catholic in a predominately Lutheran area, they had to fight to even let them be buried in the cemetery, and the markers (I can't remember exactly it's been nearly a decade since I've been there) were crappy wooden crosses and large rocks. I just thought it was weird because it was only the 2 graves - they were way off to the side along the fence. This is still a small rural community, but just a generation later (or maybe slightly younger relatives), my family had headstones. The family makes up a good chunk of the cemetery now.