Supporting History

Resurrecting Historic Cemeteries

In October, as leaves change color and as Halloween draws near, thoughts turn to the ethereal: witches, black cats, goblins, and other denizens of the dark. The cemetery, another symbol of All Hallows' Eve, conjures images of ghosts, ghouls, and spirits. Of course, despite their association with the underworld, cemeteries also are places of deep historical value that memorialize our lost loved ones with beautiful sculptural and architectural elements.

Recognizing this significance, the State Historical Fund has provided funding to restore and stabilize grave markers and chapels located in Colorado's historic cemeteries. Planning, documentation, stabilization, and restoration funding has been awarded to Columbia Cemetery in Boulder, Evergreen Cemetery in Colorado Springs, Monte Vista Cemetery in Monte Vista, Ute Cemetery in Aspen, Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Valley Brook Cemetery in Breckenridge, and the cemeteries of Routt County.

Some of these SHF-funded projects have involved developing master plans for cemetery sites, historic structure assessments for chapel buildings, and restoration and preservation plans for grave markers. Others have included physical work to stabilize and restore markers and buildings.

According to SHF policy, only properties listed in the State or National Register of Historic Places, or properties designated as local landmarks, can receive funds to carry out physical work. This rule can be problematic for some cemeteries. According to the criteria for State and National Register designation, "A cemetery is eligible if it derives its primary significance from graves of persons of transcendent importance, from age, from distinctive design features, or from association with historic events." (A more detailed description of these criteria can be obtained from the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation or the National Park Service web page.) Another difficulty hampering designation, according to National and State Register Coordinator Dale Heckendorn, is sorting out property ownership. Permission from property owners is one requirement for state and national designation as well as some local landmark ordinances. "In many early cemeteries each plot was individually owned. Sorting out current ownership in order to do a nomination sometimes becomes impossible."

Despite these difficulties, the Fund has been able to support a number of projects involving significant cemeteries. Boulder's Columbia Cemetery, established in 1870, received five grants to date totaling $375,812. These have included work to develop a preservation plan, document the grave markers and other site features, and provide for training and restoration. This has been a multi-year project for the City of Boulder and even included an emergency grant to stabilize thirty-three headstones toppled by vandals in August 2001.

Vandalism, neglect, and natural weathering may be the three greatest threats to historic cemeteries. Cemeteries seem at times to be favored places for vandals to carry out their destruction, some sites may no longer inter bodies and are therefore not maintained regularly, and markers made of natural stone are subject to the same weathering conditions as building stone. All these conditions are present at the Ute Cemetery in Aspen. The Fund awarded the City of Aspen a $99,500 grant in 2002 to implement a plan to restore gravestones and to design and construct interpretive signage. This site, which was first used in 1880, is of a unique design for its time because it displays none of the formal design elements typical in late nineteenth-century cemetery planning. The layout of the site is random and is currently overgrown with natural vegetation. Additionally, the site is significant for its high degree of integrity and for the numerous Civil War veterans buried there. The City of Aspen plans to restore seventy gravestones, sensitively remove vegetation impacting gravestones, and create paths to control the flow of traffic through the site.

Some cemetery sites include chapel buildings used for memorial services and gatherings. Typically, these small, non-denominational structures provided a haven for mourning families and friends. The Fund awarded $134,975 in two grants to the Evergreen Cemetery Chapel in Colorado Springs for interior and exterior restoration and rehabilitation. The chapel was built in 1909 after mourners at the funeral of General William Jackson Palmer were forced to withstand frigid winter cold and rain. The Monte Vista Cemetery Chapel in Monte Vista was awarded $87,950 toward a Historic Structure Assessment and restoration work. Built in 1912, the chapel is a Craftsman-style building with Greek Revival elements-an unusual combination.

This Halloween if you decide to visit your local cemetery, please remember to not only respect the dead (or undead), but also the historically significant features of these important sites. If you don't, it might haunt you forever.

BY ALYSON McGEE, Public Outreach Coordinator, State Historical Fund