Happy Halloween!

Roadtrip ~ Florissant Pioneer Cemetery

Florissant Pioneer Cemetery is located a few miles to the southeast of the town of Florissant. The town was originally a Ute Trading Post and had a post office as early as 1873. The cemetery was incorporated in 1874 and was one of the first in the Pikes Peak backcountry.

This cemetery is located on rolling terrain immediately to the east of the Florissant Fossil Beds. The oldest section of the cemetery is located on the top of a knoll immediately after entering the gate. The newer graves sites - it is still in use - are located down the hill. It is a beautiful location with tall pines and aspen as well as wildflowers.

Unfortunately, many of he headstones have been damaged and repaired (like the one above). While others are still missing pieces. The Pikes Peak Historical Society maintains the cemetery and does what it can to repair the tombstones. 

Roadtrip ~ Pioneer Cemetery

As all of you Faithful Readers out there know, no trip for Hubby & I would be complete without a visit to the local cemetery.

And Pioneer Cemetery which rests on a hill overlooking Glenwood Springs is a very special cemetery. 

It is the resting place for Harvey A. Logan a.k.a Kid Curry who was a member of Butch Cassidy's gang. 
And for Doc Holliday's gravestone.

No one knows for sure where John Henry Holliday a.k.a. Doc Holliday of OK Corral fame, is buried. But a memorial to this famous gunslinger has been erected and many people leave a token for him. Hubby had a bit of a smoke with Ol' Doc. And they talked about playing poker.

Heading up the trail toward the cemetery felt more like a pilgrimage than a hike. It was quite the trek up the hill!  

There was even a tree festooned with ribbons and flags alongside the trail.

Many of the headstones we saw were newer - the originals having become part of the landscape around us. 

The grave markers we see only represent some of the deceased buried here on this site. These are the remains of the hard working-class pioneers who's hands built Glenwood Springs. They were a multi-racial workforce of immigrants and recently freed slaves and others who came to love this land. Some are unknown.

Many of the names we saw were of children. 

And the years 1918 - 1922 were a common thread amongst many of the names we read.

Epitaph not written in English.

Pioneer Cemetery is nice. A beautiful view and a nice old growth of trees give the residents a pleasant resting spot. I could have spent more time there.

Woodmen of the World ~ Pt. 2

When the Woodmen of the World organization first came into being, it was not limited to just the United States. The organization could also be found in Canada. Though it's members were concentrated mainly along the Eastern section of the country.

At the time of the organization's birth, the Victorian Rustic Movement was at its peak. This era gave birth to the idea of cemeteries as a place for families to picnic and enjoy the out-of-doors. Cemeteries were now planned 'subdivisions' incorporating trees, flowers, benches, and nicer looking gravestones. Tree stump grave markers were now becoming popular in these new 'resting spots'.

Victorian era Gravestone - Georgetown Cemetery

W.O.W.  adopted the tree stump design for the headstones that were included with the life insurance policy which was purchased by a member. A fitting memorial to a member of the organization. 

W.O.W. designed a four to five foot tall monument, sometimes with branches and sometimes without, for adults and a stacked log design for children.  Sometimes branches were 'broken' off the monuments as family members died. 

This mother and her two children were killed in an avalanche - Central City Masonic Cemetery

The headstones would include depictions of W.O.W. relics - a maul and wedge, an axe, a dove holding an olive branch, or ivy vines and the inscription, "Here rests a Woodmen of the World". The word "rests" was used because Woodmen do not lie. 

A copy of the W.O.W. design would be sent to the local stone carver in the hometown of the deceased member. The gravestones were usually carved from limestone, but specimens of native rock were sometimes used. Quite often the local stone carver would incorporate his own designs onto the tree stump. Thus creating slight differences of pattern. 

When a W.O.W. member died, the local lodge would have a 'remembrance ceremony'.The members would march to the cemetery where the headstone would be unveiled and dedicated.

An important part in the early years of W.O.W. was the creed, "no Woodmen shall rest in an unmarked grave." And even though the tombstones were discontinued in the 1920's due to the cost, W.O.W. still follows that creed. 

Woodmen of the World ~ Pt.1

Anyone who frequents cemeteries has probably seen at least one of these unique tombstones. And those same cemetery 'haunters' have probably wondered what the term 'Woodmen of the World' (which can be seen on the stones) meant. Was it some sort of organization like the Masons? Was it the maker of the gravestone?

Woodmen of the World is a fraternal benefit society that operates a large privately held insurance company for its members.

The organization was founded in 1890 by Joseph Cullen Root. 

After hearing a sermon about "pioneer woodsmen clearing away the forest to provide for their families", Root wanted to start a society that "would clear away problems of financial security for its members".

Today, Woodmen of the World provides financial solutions (life insurance, annuities, mutual funds, college savings plans) to approximately 800,000 members in the U.S.

 Woodmen of the World Members are also eligible to receive a wide array of fraternal benefits - disaster relief, prescription drug discount card, camping experiences for youth, monetary support for members' orphaned children. 

Woodmen of the World is one of the leading presenters of U.S. flags to schools and non-profit groups. There are approximately 2,000 Woodmen of the World lodges across the Nation. Lodges conduct volunteer, patriotic and charitable activities that benefit individuals and communities. Woodmen of the World lodges have presented more than 1.4 million U.S. flags over the past 60 years.

Check back on Thursday, when I'll post Part 2 and write about these very unique headstones. 

So Many Graves.....

And so little time.

That was my first thought upon seeing the numerous cemeteries which are located at the top of the hill outside of Central City. There is the City Cemetery, the Catholic Cemetery, the Rocky Mountain Independent Order of Oddfellows Cemetery, the Knights of Pythias Cemetery, and the Red Men Lodge Cemetery. And those aren't even all of them! There's roughly a dozen cemeteries located in close proximity to Central City.
Central City is an old mining town located roughly an hour west of Denver. Hubby and I used to live there many, many moons ago. And of course, since we have been on a quest to see the historic mountain cemeteries of Colorado, this was a 'must-see'! I plan on doing a few posts come Spring about the history of Central City. It's quite interesting.
But back to the cemeteries....

City Cemetery is located directly below a mine on a hillside which is now covered with aspen. 

Many of the grave sites have begun to wash away because of the steep slope. 

The majority of the graves face east - a Christian practice of waiting for the rising sun on resurrection day. And as some stories go, the graves running on a north/south axis are of those who were not good Christians.

The Knights of Pythias Cemetery is located next to City Cemetery and there is no clear, distinct boundary between the two. 

The Red Men Lodge Cemetery is sparsely populated with a mere 26 graves. 

The Catholic Cemetery is in an open meadow. The tombstones here are not as ornate and there seems to be an air of quiet  restraint about the place. 

What is this?

There is a rather unusual building within the cemetery boundaries. As of this posting I have been unable to find out any info on its purpose. I would be interested to hear your thoughts....

The Oddfellows Cemetery is located across the road from what was once an ore mill. 

The graves here all face downhill and toward Central City.  It has quite a few Woodmen of the World tombstones. (I'll be writing a Woodmen of the World post in the near future)

The last cemetery that we visited that cold, windy December day, was the Masonic Cemetery located above Central City. 

There is no grand gate or sign which even states who these graves belong to. 

Only the tombstones and this small shed carry the Masonic Square and Compass emblem.