By Pat Atchison

On June 2, 1864, the local newspaper, The Miner, noted that the Hon. Joel Woods, a visiting legislator from Colorado, was accidentally shot and killed in the forest near town while on a hunting expedition. He was buried “in a beautiful ground just east of town which will be reserved for a public cemetery.”

This was the beginning of Citizen’s Cemetery located at 815 East Sheldon Street in Prescott. Please note the wording, “just east of town…” If you are a current resident or frequent visitor, you know that the cemetery is now completely surrounded by the city for many miles in all directions.

As the years went by, the 6½ acres of then public land on which the cemetery is located was later owned by two successive private parties. It was finally purchased by Yavapai County in 1884 for $1000 (a tidy sum for that time). The county ownership has continued since that time.

In the early days, headstones needed to be protected so that free-roaming stock and game animals didn’t knock them over and break them or accidentally move them from their established location. Because of this, gravesites were often surrounded by individual fences to prevent these damages from occurring. Today, many of the original fences still guard the individual gravesites.

>As the population in Prescott increased, the cemetery damages became more attributed to humans than to animals. Cemetery etiquette has obviously changed and many people do not show respect for the historical significance, thus either purposefully or accidentally causing damage to gravesites or headstones.

Over the years, various sizes and types of fences have been erected in the cemetery for protection of the graves and headstones. The biggest project took place in the mid-1930s when, following the Great Depression, government sponsored groups (WPA and the CCC) enclosed nearly the entire cemetery with a rock wall. The part of the wall bordering Sheldon Street was torn down when the street was widened. The fence erected along Sheldon Street was chain-link (and ugly!). It was replaced by an attractive wrought iron fence financed and constructed by ADOT and completed in January 2001.

At one time, the east side of the cemetery was totally unfenced and could grant vehicles entry potentially doing massive damage to the gravesites. This was noted by the Yavapai Cemetery Association and corrected with money raised through local Christmas boutiques organized by Cookie Brinkmeyer and friends. Much of the rock wall surrounding the cemetery today is only a few feet high, allowing random access. Well over $100,000 is needed to complete fencing the entire cemetery in order to protect 147 years of Prescott’s history and heritage. The need exists for an all-encompassing, locked fence around the property. It would provide a barrier which would deter most (if not all) mischief makers. A fence around Citizens Cemetery is a high-priority item.

Nancy Burgess (our in-house preservationist) worked with the county to apply for a matching "Arizona Heritage Fund Grant" to build the fence. It was approved! However, the bottom fell out of the state’s budget and the state took back their portion of the grant money, leaving the project back at ‘square one.’ Work continues toward preservation of this historic jewel and the Yavapai Cemetery Association welcomes both physical and monetary help. They may be contacted at 778-5988 for information.

In the meantime, the cemetery is open to the public from dawn to dusk. Come browse, appreciate your heritage and help us care for it in a reverent manner.

Pat Atchison is head of the Yavapai Cemetery Association. She has written several other cemetery pieces for Days Past.