Welcome to the cemeteries of Colorado. Since this is my home state and where the Temple's headquarters are, it is only natural that we have so many pictures of Colorado cemeteries. I have not, by any means, even visited all of the cemeteries in this beautiful state (please check back often, I try to add more each month). In many of these photos, you will see what harsh Colorado winters do to the headstones, especially in the mountian regions. This is why we so urgently need your help in restoring and preserving these beautiful monuments to beautiful people... the same people that we came from.

The wooden headstones are all but gone, I have managed to capture the few left on film. The sandstone headstones are almost unreadable for the most part, and the antique marble ones are starting to break in half and crumble to the ground. You will notice that in most of the photographs taken by me, the words are not very legible. This could be due to a few different reasons. 1) I would have had to scan the photo at such a huge size that you would have fallen asleep waiting for it to load. 2) I am just as interested in the stone itself and the background and surroundings. I find the beauty within the entire package, not simply in who is buried there. That is, of course, not to say that the people are not important, for they are so very important! Please do not take any of our photos from these pages to place elsewhere. If you do like one, and wish to have it for your personal collection, please go ahead. And if you do wish to repost one of these, please give the Temple proper credit and a link. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy browsing through the cemeteries of Colorado. If you would perhaps like a larger copy, please email me and I will do the best I can to send you an enlarged copy. And if by chance, you live in Colorado, or wish to travel here and visit any of these cemeteries, I personally will be more than happy to give you a tour!

  October 20, 2003-- We will be adding more cemeteries over the next month! All of the photos contained within are of different quality. Some were taken with the first digital camera, and so therefore they are not really spectacular or anything. Beautiful to look at, but not necessarily large in size or anything. But 90% of the photos here now were taken with 35mm, 800 speed film (making those greens so green!). We hope that you enjoy looking at these as much as we enjoyed taking them. --A new note-- the Temple has just purchased a new digital camera!! I will be putting up 82 new photographs today, of Crystal Valley (a new cemetery for this page), and some high-quality shots of Evergreen! The old photos of Evergreen are simply horrible for the most part...

Cleora Cemetery is located just East of Salida, Colorado. It is very old, dating back to the 1870's, and has not been used in many years. As you can see from many of these photos, some of the Colorado Cemeteries are some of the most beautiful by far if you like the mountain regions. These particular photos are larger than the other ones due to the beauty captured on film. I have found evidence that would suggest that someone has used some of the older wooden headstones to have campfires near the rear of the cemetery! This is very wrong!

Crystal Valley Cemetery is located in Manitou Springs, Colorado. A very beautiful place that I once had the fine opportunity of living in. This little cemetery is tucked-away on the side of a hill, but is rather a nice visit! I will be getting more photos of this cemetery soon. A couple of years ago, I performed a wedding ceremony in this very cemetery. It still remains one of my favorite places. I was there just the other day, and a couple stopped to inquire if I knew where Emma Crawford was buried in the cemetery. Emma Crawford is who the famed Coffin Races in Manitou Springs are in honor of. You can find a bit of information regarding her on the WWW... her coffin was buried high on a hill, but the rains finally unburied her coffin and sent it washing down right through town! She is actually re-buried (in an unmarked grave, to my knowledge) in Crystal Park Cemetery... a place I am yet to explore! But I shall soon.

And another interesting thing-- in one of the last photographs, there will be a little brown building. This was once the caretaker's place. Now, it is on the National Historic Registry.... *AND* what does it now have inside of it? Bicycles. I kid you not. When looking through the window, all one can see is piles of old bicycles. I am very curious about this. I also noticed the other day that one of the windows had been broken out. Yes, broken outwards. Was one of the bicycles trying to escape?

Some of these photos are on the larger side of 175k. I made the mistake of using Adobe Photoshop to save them-- we all know Adobe loves huge file sizes. I tried to re-compress them using the JPEG Wizard, but it simply depredated them beyond the quality that I am willing to have for these photos. So I left them as I had them. I just wanted you to know in case you still have a dial-up IP and all.

Dory Hill Cemetery is one of the oldest known cemeteries in Colorado. It is nestled high in the Rockies Mountains at 9290 feet above sea level. People were buried in this cemetery beginning in 1860 up until 1937. One must be very careful where they are walking, for the ground is full of holes, sunken graves, and many obstacles. It is located on the side of a hill (thus called Dory Hill) and has almost been reclaimed by the forest in many parts. I highly recommend the wearing of boots and jeans while exploring this particular cemetery. I have not found any evidence of vandalism within this cemetery, probably because it is located not 50 yards from the county jail... interesting, isn't it?

Evergreen Cemetery in Colorado Springs came into existence about 1876, when Colorado became a state. It is located near the downtown area, and it is rather beautiful in it's own right. There is quite a bit of history in these stones, it is very well kept, and one can take a rather nice stroll around it for many hours. The city still garages one of the oldest horse-drawn hearses there, and I was given permission to take photos of it and such. This summer I will do that, and I was even given permission by the cemetery manager to do it at night. He is very interested in the idea. Here is a wonderful advertisement from the local newspaper.

October 19, 2003-- We now have some new photos of the Evergreen Cemetery! 65 of them, actually. You will notice that I do even have some of the little place that is in the advertisement located above. Just a small note on some of these new photos-- I tried my best to preserve the quality of the photos I have taken with the Temple's new digital camera. I think they have turned out rather fine, for as much compression as I had to do to them to be ready for the WWW. On the little building of the family Bacon, you will notice that the doors have been removed now. In earlier photos, it showed the doors as being almost destroyed, and now they have simply removed them. I do not know if they are to be replaced or not. Also, in some of the later photographs, I have taken a number of them "inside" one of the mausoleums, as best that I could. This new camera (how I love it), actually brightened-up the inside when it was taking a photo. The photos turned out better than what I and my Mom could see with our naked-eyes. I think that is rather neat.

You will also see one photograph of a white marble cross that lays upon the ground. This photo angers me, really. Someone was burning candles upon it, and they left their mess. The bases of the candles still sit upon the stone, and wax is about the gravestone. Next to the white marble cross, you will see a rather large grave stone toppled.... it is my personal belief that whoever was burning candles and doing *whatever* that night, is also responsible for the toppling of the stone. Why does this anger me? Because it is disrespect! Even my Mom asked if we could right the stone, which probably weighs over 400 pounds, and I told her that we could not. The cemetery would have to do it. My Mom even asked me if the "Goths" probably did this and all.... I looked at her and said "No, only ****** would do this." Please excuse my language. It made me angry, it truly did. One of the few times my Mom *and* my Dad go to the cemetery with me, and all they see is desecration.... it saddens me, it hurts me. It makes so many people look bad. Please, if you are guilty, or know of someone who is, please stop or ask them to stop. These cemeteries are very special to me, and so many others, please respect that. How would you feel if you went to visit your loved-one's grave and found it desecrated in some manner? It would hurt, I assure you. It breaks my heart to stand there and watch my 57-year-old Mom try to move stones back into place and all.... I cannot do so much anymore because of my back and all... please, stop toppling stones. Respect-- it is all about respect.

Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Colorado is a rather large place (in comparison to the places that I usually visit). The first burials were in 1890. It has some truly beautiful monuments and statues.

Greenmount Cemetery, located in Durango, Colorado is an absolutely beautiful place. It is located on top of a hill, overlooking the town. Actually, it is not so much located on top of the hill, as much as it is located up the side of the hill. It is on a very steep grade, and it will tire you out walking around it. It continues on the other side of the hill, and is very interestingly laid out. It is one of my favorites by far in the way of beauty.

Greenwood Pioneer Cemetery located in Canon City, Colorado is a beautiful place and a very lonely place as well. It is located on the outskirts of town, about 50 feet across the street from the gates to I.O.O.F. Cemetery (International Order of Oddfellows). It was rather interesting how the two cemeteries are simply divided by a two lane road. Quit a bit of restoration work needs to be done in this particualr cemetery, for you can see from the few photos that I have that the winters can be quite harsh on the old sandstone markers. This is also the cemetery where they bury those who die in the local prisons who are not claimed by anyone. In the other corner is the Pauper's Field, and a sad place it is. Last I knew, there were 17 prisons in Canon City, and they hold the worst criminals in the country. The UnaBomber is there, as was Jeffrey Dalmer and many others. This is one of my favorite places to relax, for it is very old, and almost falling to pieces. When funds are available, this will be the next cemetery in line for restoration.

Gunnison Cemetery is located just East of Gunnison, Colorado. It is a beautiful little place, very quiet and very well kept.

I call this particular cemetery "The Hidden Cemetery" because not only has it not been used in almost 50 years, but there is not a road leading to it. It is located near La Veta, Colorado. The path that must be taken there is by foot, over four acres of private property, through electrified fences, with lots of rattlesnakes wishing to say "hi" to you. One must stop and pet the horses, and gaze above at the marvelous blue sky. The early part of the path is scattered with various machinery from yester-year, and it is very fascinating to explore, one simply must remember about the rattlesnakes though. In one of the photographs, you will see a gate, that is looking out from the cemetery along the path that one must hike to get up there. This cemetery, actually called Pioneer Cemetery, is in rather exceptional condition for having been forgotten about for so long. It does have its share of crumbling stones, but it looks as though it has been blessed. It does not receive a heavy amount of snowfall, luckily enough, and cactus and wildflowers are easily noticed within the photographs. Where is it? Um... hidden. It is a secret place, but I will be more than happy to give anyone a tour of it.

Howard Cemetery in Howard, Colorado has always been one of my favorite little places to hide away. Hidden across the Arkansas River by the highway, it is very secluded and a nice place to visit if you would like some solitude. This cemetery is rather small, since the town of Howard sports about 10 people, but the graves here date back quite a ways.

Lakeside Cemetery is located in Canon City, Colorado. It is rather difficult to obtain burial information pre-1905, since the Records Hall burned-down about that time. My Great-Grandparents are buried just inside the entrance of this beautiful cemetery. I only have a few photos of this cemetery, since I have always been drawn to the same grave... a very long story indeed.

The cemeteries in the La Veta, Colorado area are most interesting. Almost bordering on desert land, yet surrounded by the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. They certainly have character, and are most wonderful to visit.

Cripple Creek is very well known for its glorious history in the mining days of Colorado. This once prosperous town once saw almost 100,000 people in the surrounding area at the turn of the 1900's. By the 1980's its population was that of about 750. It has now been rebuilt since they have moved limited gambling into the area, which in my personal opinion, has destroyed all of it. The cemetery still sports incredible views of the town and surrounding areas, for it is on the side of Mount Pisgah, and at the top of the cemetery, it seems that one can see forever. The cemetery is falling apart, and it is very sad that a town now as rich as Cripple Creek is, cannot put forth any effort to maintain its own vital history. The last picture is of the cemetery in about 1920ish.

This cemetery can be found upon the highway, slightly North of La Veta, and is called the North La Veta Cemetery. I rather enjoyed visiting there, even after stepping in numerous "holes" of many sorts. The oldest grave that I found dated back to the Civil War, and I am sure that there were many more that did not withstand the harsh Winters of yester-year....

If you would like to be buried in a most beautiful place, may I suggest Ouray, Colorado? It is nestled in the mountains of Western Colorado, in an incredibly gorgeous valley. The town of Ouray has a very lively history to it, it is out of the way, quiet, beautiful, and very peaceful.

Roselawn Cemetery is very special to me. Many members of my family are buried there--- starting with my Great-Great Grandfather and down to my Baby Cousin who died at birth... it is a beautiful place, away from Pueblo, Colorado for the moment. It is incredibly peaceful and quiet for the moment... just the way I like it. They are expanding, and I may have some photos of the expansion soon. My parents and I have decided to be buried there.... with so much of our family.

This cemetery is located a little south-east of Florence. The first burial in 1873 was a Mrs. Stephen Tanner, placed in a small plot near the center, then known as the Tanner Cemetery. In the 1880's, a considerable acreage was acquired by a Coal Creek Scottish fraternal order, it was Thistle Lodge #1 of the Gardeners, whose symbol was the Square and Compass with Sickle. You will find this symbol on headstones in the old section of the cemetery. Originally named Highland, the cemetery was renamed Union Highland on July 7, 1930, when the operation was turned over to the city of Florence to be used by the city and surrounding communities.