Citizens Cemetery Wall Construction


details

Unknown Unknown c0101pc.jpg C-101 B&W 1020-0101-0003 c0101pc Print 3x5 Historic Photographs c. 1934 Reproduction requires permission. Digital images property of SHM Library & Archives

Description

The completed front entrance of the Citizens Cemetery wall construction along Sheldon Street. This was a Work Progress Administration (WPA) project in Prescott, Arizona during the 1930s.

The original public cemetery of Prescott, the Citizens Cemetery was used, with only a few exceptions, between 1864 and 1933. A small rocky hill, 6.6 acres in size and covered with bushes, tress, and small prickly-pear cacti just northeast of the proposed downtown in 1864, the site was somewhat protected from the dangers of desperados, drunken saddle bums, and stray cattle. Although over 2, 800 people were buried here, no burial plot system that accurately mapped out who was interred and where they were interred was designed until 1904. Stone markers with legible names and dates were rare for the first twenty or so years. Many of the gravesites are marked “unknown,” and some 2,000 graves have no marker at all. In April 1904 Frank Hesse designed a new plat for the cemetery and turned it over to the board of supervisors. The city removed old rotten, tumbled down board fences and cleaned up the entire burial grounds. In September 1933, funeral home director Lester Ruffner recommended that the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors order the cemetery closed for all future burials.

Today the 1904 map resides in the archives of Sharlot Hall Museum and is an invaluable resource for researchers and historians.

Purchase

To purchase this image please click on the NOTIFY US button and we will contact you with details

Notify Us

The process for online purchase of usage rights to this digital image is under development. To order this image, CLICK HERE to send an email request for details. Refer to the ‘Usage Terms & Conditions’ page for specific information. A signed “Permission for Use” contract must be completed and returned. Written permission from Sharlot Hall Museum is required to publish, display, or reproduce in any form whatsoever, including all types of electronic media including, but not limited to online sources, websites, Facebook Twitter, or eBooks. Digital files of images, text, sound or audio/visual recordings, or moving images remain the property of Sharlot Hall Museum, and may not be copied, modified, redistributed, resold nor deposited with another institution. Sharlot Hall Museum reserves the right to refuse reproduction of any of its materials, and to impose such conditions as it may deem appropriate. For certain scenarios, the price for personal usage of the digital content is minimal; CLICK HERE to download the specific form for personal usage. For additional information, contact the Museum Library & Archives at 928-445-3122 ext. 14 or email: orderdesk@sharlot.org.

Close