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Cemetery Life

AIR DATE: Friday, October 31st 2008
Download the mp3 for this show.
What can graveyards tell us about the places where we live?

If you've tuned in to opbmusic lately, you may have heard some cuts from "Dearly Departed," the CD put out by Friends of Lone Fir Cemetery to raise money for the upkeep of this historic burial ground. As the songs on this compilation demonstrate, Lone Fir and other final resting places can offer a window into history. We'll take a little peek through that window tomorrow on Think Out Loud as we hear about historic cemeteries around the state.

The Jacksonville Cemetery in southern Oregon contains the bodies of the town's first recorded residents. Portland's Lone Fir Cemetery is home to the remains of the city's early luminaries such as Asa Lovejoy and Dr. James Hawthorne. A walk through Bridal Veil's cemetery can tell you a lot about this Oregon ghost town's better days. Like Friends of Lone Fir, many of the people who care for these historic cemeteries have become creative about collecting donations to fund maintenance of the grounds and headstones.

Have you visited Oregon's historic cemeteries? What did you learn there? What can graveyards tell us about the places where we live?

**EXTRA** Click here to see an audio slideshow of the Lone Fir Cemetery with photos by OPB's Pete Springer and audio by April Baer. If you missed April's full story on Morning Edition Friday morning, you can hear it here.

GUESTS:

Photo credit: Pete Springer/OPB

Tagged as: cemetery · dying · halloween

Gailpioneer wrote to us in the October Ideas part of our blog. I wanted to share the post with you here:

?Cemeteries??? I just heard that you are looking for ideas on listener's favorite cemeteries. Mine's the Lebanon Pioneer Cemetery. Between 2000 and 2006 when I was the 7th-8th grade social studies teacher at Lebanon Middle School/Pioneer K-8 School my students adopted the cemetery and did geographic fieldwork there in the fall and service learning on the annual "Day of Caring" SOLV project in May. The cemetery was researched and documented by Pat Dunn and Jeanne Robinson in the 1990's. The kids and I use their Lebanon Cemetery Book to learn both in the classroom and then go to the cemetery. There's a rich variety of gravestone types (marble, white bronze, and granite) and some interesting stories. The marble stone of Daniel Simons, a veteran of the War of 1812, is carved with a pioneer wagon with oxen and an epitaph in cursive writing that reads "Men like these won the West" (or something close to that). The first burial was in 1850 and was a 13-year old girl who died of diphtheria. Her stone has a carved rose. One of Oregon's first female physicians, Clara Montigue Davidson is buried there. After the death of her young daughter, she dedicated herself to medicine and went by wagon back to Philadelphia for medical training. Clara's death was caused by an infection, probably blood-borne, that happened when she lanced a boil on a farm child's leg. A favorite epithaph is on Philothea Elkin's grave--"She hath done what she could." At least two of my students are descendents of people buried in the cemetery. The kids' favorite story is Ray (Rae) Leonard, a "he" who swapped stories, out-fished and hunted all "his" cronies. When Ray suddenly took sick, the town doctor was called in. After an examination the doc revealed that their friend was a woman. Kids say they've found out the identity of Lebanon's first cross-dresser! Cemeteries are great places for learning, to teach about demographics such as change in family size, causes of death, age at death, and migration. One year on Halloween, some over-zealous 8th graders called the police to report that someone had "started a fire in our cemetery". It turned out that it was the Civil War re-enactment group who, to deter vandalism, were set up with a bonfire and cider for trick-or-treaters. We don't have any ghosts, that I know of. One girl did tell me that her grandmother, who lives near the cemetery, had her keep an eye out for the fairies that dance around the large cedar tree on the east side of the cemetery on warm summer evenings. Several kids have reported sightings.?
Sarah Jane Rothenfluch —
I'm comforted and delighted by the news of your 10/31 program. Thanks to Dirk Siedlecki and Rod Canzler for their dedication to two very different sites which I hope your program will allow time to explore. Historic cemeteries seem to get attention twice a year: Memorial Day and Halloween. During Memorial Day there is an honoring of those who came before, especially in the wars. But what is the meaning of October cemetery vandalism? Denial of Death?
There is so much to know: Artistic values expressed in tombstones. Traditional cemetery landscaping which expresses the culture of that place at that time: trees, shrubs, flowers. All serve as outdoor museums...just as much as...well... old buildings, bridges, statues? Again, thanks for the program. Didn't know it was coming up until tonight. Mirra Meyer, former Oregon Historic Cemeteries Commission and still caring.
Mirra Meyer —
As a fifth-generation Oregonian I am proud to visit many different sites around this state as well as others in the West. I have a family cemetery in Jefferson Oregon on other's people property but we have a right-of-way to it. Family in town cares for it, but I drive down to visit it a lot. The whole family came on the Oregon Trail, and upon arrival, many of them died of disease. This changed their fortunes a great deal since many men and boys were lost.

I also visit Lone Fir a great deal. I have many Sicilian immigrant cousins buried there. It is my hope that in the future we can have headstones made for a few of the young women who appear to have died around 1915-1919 and are buried in unmarked graves near the road in the cemetery itself. It saddens me that our family hasn't fixed this yet, but at our next family picnic, I think I'll bring it up.

My husband and I visit historic cemeteries at the coast, near Astoria, and our favorite in Oysterville, WA a few times each year. We also like one near Charbonneau.

From my many visits to these places, I have learned a great deal about the people who once lived there, but I have also seen a great deal of neglect. It is often very sad to see and in my opinion, it has more to do with our communities moving around and losing touch with their roots. I think it is very important to know where you've come from, what those people went through, and that you should connect with others in your family?no matter how distant.

Through research, I have reconnected with one of my families that meets every two years to celebrate our common ancestor that once lived in New Amsterdam. Anyone in the US with that family name, is related to this single person. I think that through these family connections, both alive and dead, we really come together as a community knowing and showing and growing our history together. It's about more than a scary place. Cemeteries bring families together.
Ficurinia —
Ficurinia posted her note seconds before mine, or I would have noted our different interpretation of levels of care of these small cemeteries. The one at Oysterville is very special and warrants a drive up the peninsula just to see it. You can see that at DeadManTalking, too (http://www.flickr.com/photos/deadmantalking/). Check out Chief Nahcati's grave (can't miss it), but especially the sublime natural stone for William Bailey.
johanmathiesen —
Ficurinia posted her note seconds before mine, or I would have noted our different interpretation of levels of care of these small cemeteries. The one at Oysterville is very special and warrants a drive up the peninsula just to see it. You can see that at DeadManTalking, too (http://www.flickr.com/photos/deadmantalking/). Check out Chief Nahcati's grave (can't miss it), but especially the sublime natural stone for William Bailey.
johanmathiesen —
First of all, go to Flickr.com and check out my site at DeadManTalking (http://www.flickr.com/photos/deadmantalking/) where you'll find some 10,000 photos from better than 600 cemeteries, mostly from Oregon and western Washington. It's the largest collection of cemetery photos anywhere. It's organized by regions and alphabetically within regions. You can take a virtual tour of all those cemeteries, most of which are small pioneer cemeteries.

As to the cemeteries represented by the guests, both Jacksonville and Lone Fir are among the finest in the state, and Bridal Veil is sweet and will, hopefully, pick up, if the post office moves next door.

The list of interesting historic cemeteries in the state is long, but I'd start with the incomparable Camp Polk Cemetery outside Sisters (definitely look it up at DeadManTalking). It's a free-for-all on an island hilltop surrounded by a sea of grass. It's rife with homemade markers, fire-pits, crude benches, old stones, delicately landscaped plots, and more howling coyotes than I care to remember. It's large, lively, covered with scrub trees, and certainly merits a picnic lunch. Bring a beer.

The Coast has a bunch of interesting cemeteries, but I'd have to recommend the one at Taft for the sheer spectacular nature of its site with long, dramatic views of the the beach from high on the cliffs; not to mention a fine collection of homemade markers, plus a couple oversize ones that look like they were imported from Portugal, or wherever, and command a superb prospect over the Pacific.

Eugene's Masonic Cemetery, which doubles as a wildlife refuge and historical museum, is a model of how to rethink and reuse an historic cemetery. It's a cemetery where the more you look, the more you see. And if you're down that way, Pleasant Hill is a great folk cemetery and Creswell is surprisingly charming.

In this end of the valley both the Yamhill cemeteries are special as is Buck Hollow outside Willamina and Adams on Dickie Prairie back of Mollala. Metro's own Mountain View Corbett is a delight in fine weather, and I don't even know if I should mention the hidden Jones Cemetery.

Nor should I probably mention the Native-American cemeteries, for, although they are among the most interesting in the state, the tribes can be sensitive about non-tribal visitors.

As far as I can tell, the small cemeteries around the state are almost all in a state of renewal. Cemetery levies seem to always pass, and there's a lot of activity going on. (You'll find, by the way, that each cemetery at DeadManTalking is geo-tagged; so you can pinpoint its location exactly, should you be interested in making a live visit.)

Come visit "http://www.flickr.com/photos/deadmantalking/". It never stops growing.

johanmathiesen —
In White Salmon WA, in the gorge, we are in a bad way with our pioneer cemetery. Most of the headstones were moved in the 40s to the "new cemetery" on the outskirts of town and remains were left in place. The burial ground is now an unmarked field. It is such a shame.

one idea for town like ours is to hire a ground penetrating radar and at least know where the graves are, although the particulars of the grave may never be known.

We have not had luck in finding funding to have this done unfortunately.

I believe the Yakima nation offers this radar service for towns at a pretty reasonable rate.

Good idea for a halloween show!
chaika —
I've read with interest many newspaper articles that have discussed the focus on maintaining and preserving our cemeteries. I have a landscaping background and would like to participate in the future at a local cemetery.
Mark in Corvallis


marko3 —
Hi Mark,

Let me know if you want contact information for cemeteries around Corvallis, just let me know. www.oregonheritage.org

Kuri
Kuri Gill —
I'd like to hear more discussion about green burial cemetery options. Green cemeteries can drastically reduce expense on every front while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and giving back our remains to the earth in a sustainable way!
Cosmos —
This is a great idea. I'm not sure how much we'll get to this today, but I'd love to do a show on green burials in the near future. Any specific suggestions of what we should cover?
Sarah Jane Rothenfluch —
When we were shooting photos for Dearly Departed, the Cd about residents of Lone fir cemetery in Portland, i came upon this grave...it was so moving....reminded me of the heartbreaking short story: "For sale. Baby shoes. never worn." And illustrates just how hard and brief life could be for children-for families during this period of our history.
katesokoloff —
Greetings,
One of the more remote "cemeteries" may be that of the grave of John Swallow on the Lake of the Woods Trail in the Mt Jefferson Wilderness. I have attached a photo of the grave and it may be one of the last before the B&B fire. I also contained a photo of the first signs of smoke from the B&B fire above the Lake of the Woods. I remember trying to do a search of John Swallow when we returned from the hike but don't recall having any success. Anybody know who he was and how he got there?
lizfrombend —
I have family members that homesteaded near Silver Falls State Parks in the Pioneer Cemetery off of SE Stark in Portland. I think it really gives a good picture of Oregon's history. My great-grandfather helped the Portland school districts think bigger by buying up land so that when Portland got bigger, they'd be able to have land to build those schools on. Today, that land is used for the Portland schools.

I think that cemetery (Pioneer) and many others have that rich history of Oregon that many people do not know or, unfortunately, do not appreciate.
Thanks for your show,
CJ Webb
CJ Webb —
Gailpioneer again... There's a great pioneer cemetery in Union, Oregon. There is a lovely marble statue of a woman who died young. An anonymous donor regularly delivers red roses to this grave. My favorite epitaph in that cemetery is "First I wasn't, then I was, and now I ain't no more". There's a family who died in a carriage accident, a murderer, and a cement bunker-like structure of a man who feared being buried alive. The caretaker in Union is a wealth of information about the cemetery.

Your listeners should know that a branch of geography, called medical geography, within demography, makes for a fascinating study of any community and the historical millieu.

Great program!!
Gailpioneer —
I have always been a cemetery fan and rarely pass up the chance to wander through one. One Saturday back in the 70's two friends and I went on a backroad drive and much later during a quick "pit stop" at a lone intersection out in the wilderness I tripped over some bushes and came face to face with a wooden gravestone! We discovered an abandoned cemetery by accident. Most of the gravestones were wooden. I was not yet a graveyard fan and we forget about this one for years. Then, later on when we remembered it we have never been able to relocate it. I am surprised you didn't mention any Native American cemeteries. There is lots of history there not to mention beauty.
Dr Loco —
Be sure to mention http://www.FindAGrave.com.
You can search for pics of famous gravestones, stones of famous people, or enter pics and bios of family and friends and leave snippets of their stories.

Fascinating subject.
JimBow —
i have visited cemeteries all my life, starting with new england graveyards that date back to the 1600s, to local pioneer cemeteries, and even ancient stone graves in ireland. there is so much to learn in reading gravestones, so much to imagine about people's lives and deaths, and even about what is not said.

the day my daughter died in 2001, i was returning from the airport by way of n.e. glisan, and passed the brainard pioneer cemetery. this is a street i had driven on hundreds of times, even daily -- and never noticed before this sweet little graveyard. i thought to myself, how odd that i'd never seen this cemetery before.

when we had to choose where to bury our daughter, we wanted a pioneer cemetery and, looking over the list at the funeral home, my daughter's father immediately pointed to "Brainard Cemetery" and said, "That's where I used to walk my dog every day when I was a kid." and i of course told him that i had just seen that cemetery for the first time. so that was where we buried our girl.

the brainard pioneer cemetery is such an accessible place, small and intimate, that people we know visit there regularly, even people who avoid cemeteries at all costs. they have remarked that they don't mind it, they kind of like it, to have a "visit." in the jewish tradition, we leave stones to mark our visit, and some leave mementos -- seashells, jewelry, books even. it's comforting to me to visit her grave and see the trinkets and stones, which tell me people still remember, still visit.

as i write this, i am now listening to the song about sweet emma. my daughter's name was emma.
karencheckoway —
I discovered one of Oregon's great overlooked cemeteries, Pioneer Memorial in Eugene, while attending the University of Oregon. According to the UO library archives (the cemetery sits right on the library's southeast flank, protected and obscured by a stand of ancient Doug firs) "[f]or many years the cemetery was considered as a viable space for future university growth. A 1963 plan (Lutes and Amundson) envisioned placing buildings over the graves by means of stilts and enabling navigation through raised walkways and bridges." Fortunately common sense prevailed in the end, and the site still offers a rare chance for locals to seek out peace and quiet right in the midst of an often clamorous campus.
newshound —
While having landscaping done on our backyard a head stone was uncovered. It is from a man who was a WWI veteran who died in 1966. His last name is somewhat chiseled out so it's hard to read. I was wondering if there is some place to contact to identify where this head stone belongs. We would like to return it to family members.
pamela music —
There are historic cemeteries that were formerly abandoned everywhere in Oregon. The state negotiates with local bodies to administer these cemeteries. In the Portland metropolitan area, METRO, administers the cemeteries as open space, and in some case allows burials. There are periodic clean-up efforts at many of the cemeteries.

METRO publishes a book about these cemeteries and burial sites. My favorite is the burial site of Arthur Wallace, deceased 1898, who is buried in the right-of-way of SW Lowell Street, just east of SW Condor above Barbur Boulevard. The lone headstone is surrounded by lawn that is maintained by a nearby conscientious neighbor (Thank you). The street was platted prior to 1898, but the surrounding houses were not built until the early 1900s. My research on Wallace has found little: he was from Kentucky or Tennessee, and had a family locally. I suspect he was buried at this site to save expenses, or was banned from other cemeteries for some reason, perhaps a suicide.
Jon Wood —
Jon, there is also the possibility that Arthur Wallace lived right there on that hillside before Barbur Boulevard was constructed. When I first saw his gravestone it and the lot around it was encompassed by blackberries. My thanks too to the neighbor who has cared for the site since he found it in the brambles.

For readers who find themselves interested in historic cemeteries because of the lives represented there, the monuments, landscaping, heritage plantings, wildlife habitat value, etc., I encourage you to go on line for: Association for Gravestone Studies, a national organization primarily based in New England, but with an informative website and an annual memorable conference; Oregon Parks and Recreation, Heritage Conservation Division, Oregon Commission on Historic Cemeteries; and Oregon Historic Cemeteries Association.
Mirra Meyer —
PAGE - CEMETERY NAME - LOCATION

1 ? Joseph Cemetery - Joseph, OR
3 ? Enterprise Cemetery - Enterprise, OR
6 ? Elsie Cemetery - Elsie, OR
7 ? American Legion Cemetery - Manzanita, OR
8 ? Stain Louis Cemetery - Saint Louis, OR
9 ? Bramlet Memorial Cemetery - Wallowa, OR
10 ? Athena Cemetery - Athena, OR
13 ? Helix Cemetery - Helix, OR
15 ? Myrick Cemetery - Myrick, OR
15 - Lake View Cemetery, Seattle, WA
19 - Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Seattle, WA
25 - Fort Lawton Cemetery, Seattle, WA
27 ? Elkton Cemetery, Elkton, OR
28 - Coles Valley Cemetery, Umpqua, OR
29 - Cleveland Cemetery, Cleveland, OR
30 - Melrose Cemetery - Melrose, OR
31 - Saint Joseph Catholic Cemetery, Roseburg, OR
32 - IOOF Cemetery, Roseburg, OR
32 - Roseburg Memorial Gardens, Roseburg, OR
35 - Roseburg National Cemetery, Roseburg, OR (Established 1897)
36 - Civil Bend Cemetery ? Winston, OR (1877)
38 - Lookingglass Community Cemetery ? Lookinglass, OR
39 - Myrtle Creek Pioneer Cemetery ? Myrtle Creek, OR
41 - Odd Fellows Cemetery ? Myrtle Creek, OR
43 - Wilbur Cemetery ? Wilbur, OR
43 - Fair Oaks Cemetery ? Fair Oaks, OR
44 - Valley View Cemetery ? Sutherlin, OR
44 - Cedar Hill Cemetery ? Oakland, OR
45 - Oakland Masonic and Old Town Oakland Cemeteries ? Oakland, OR
47 - Applegate Pioneer Cemetery ? Yoncalla, OR
48 - Drain-Yoncalla Masonic Cemetery ? Yoncalla, OR
49 - Applegate Cemetery ? Yoncalla, OR
50 - Drain IOOF Cemetery ? Drain, OR
52 - Comstock Cemetery ? Comstock, OR
54 - Lone Fir Cemetery ? Portland, OR
57 - Multnomah Park Pioneer Cemetery ? Portland, OR
59 - Greencrest Memorial Park - Sheridan, OR
59 - Buck Hollow Cemetery ? Willamina, OR
63 - Tacoma Cemetery ? Tacoma, WA
65 ? Tacoma Mausoleum ? Tacoma, WA
65 ? Oakwood Hill Cemetery ? Tacoma, WA
66 ? Saint Louis Cemetery ? Saint Louis, OR
67 ? Gervais Masonic Cemetery ? Gervais, OR
68 ? Sacred Heart Cemetery ? Gervais, OR
69 ? Saint Patrick?s Historic Cemetery ? New Era, OR
72 ? Mount Angel Cemetery ? Mount Angel, OR
72 ? Molalla Memorial Cemetery ? Molalla, OR
72 ? Miller Cemetery ? Silverston, OR
72 ? Maplewood Pioneer Cemetery ? Scotts Mills, OR
73 ? Lee Mission Cemetery ? Salem, OR
73 ? Hubbard Cemetery, Hubbard, OR
74 ? Howell Prairie Cemetery ? Salem, OR
74 ? Hopewell Cemetery ? Hubbard, OR
74 - Hayesville Cemetery ? Hayesville, OR
74 - Gervais Masonic Cemetery ? Gervais, OR
74 ? Fairfield Cemetery ? Fairfield, OR
75 ? Clagget Cemetery ? Keizer, OR
75 ? City View Cemetery ? Salem, OR
77 ? Chemawa Indian School Cemetery ? Salem, OR
77 ? Champoeg Cemetery ? Champoeg, OR
77 - Butteville Cemetery ? Butteville, OR
77 ? Bethany Pioneer Cemetery ? Silverson, OR
78 ? Belle Passi Cemetery ? Woodburn, OR
80 ? Clatsop Plains Pioneer Cemetery ? Warrenton, OR
80 ? Greenwood Cemetery ? Astoria, OR
84 ? Greenwood Cemetery ? Astoria, OR
84 - Ocean View Cemetery ? Warrenton, OR
88 ? Fort Stevens Cemetery ? Fort Stevens, OR
89 ? Fishhawk Cemetery ? Birkenfeld, OR
89 ? Jewell Cemetery ? Jewell, OR
92 ? Hayes Cemetery ? Hayes, WA
93 ? Amboy Cemetery ? Amboy, WA
94 ? Chelatchie Cemetery ? Chelatchie, WA
95 ? Lone Pine Cemetery ? Woodland Park, WA
95 ? Frank Abel Cemetery ? Reno, WA
100 ? IOOF Memorial Cemetery ? Woodland, WA
familysearch —

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