Old Pima Cemetery Pima, Graham, Arizona |
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To get to Old Pima Cemetery turn south from US-70
onto 300 West St. in Pima. Turn west on 100 South St., turn south on 400 West St., and turn east
on 250 South St. Go to the end of the street. You will see a fence line which designates the farmland
that was previously the Old Pima Cemetery. Currently, the farmland is owned by Clarence and Joan McBride.
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Old Pima Cemetery |
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by Wilma Carter Rhinehart |
Henry Elliot Norton was the Sexton in the town of Pima and cared for the cemetery, digging graves etc. And when the railroad was built through the Gila Valley the right of way came right through the Pima Cemetery, so a new plot of ground was obtained for burial purposes and the residents of the old cemetery had to be exhumed and moved. Henry Norton was in charge of the work which was a major undertaking. |
This information was taken from the Book of Remembrance of the early pioneers written by Laura McBride Smith and Grace McBride Larson |
In talking with different families and trying to find out who was buried in unmarked graves, the same story was repeated about the graves in the Old Pima Cemetery that were never moved for one reason or another. So I began a list of the people that still remain in the same old plot and never moved. There are no headstones or any sign of a cemetery here. It is a field plowed and planted and being used. But to me the ground is still sacred and the people buried there should be on record. |
My parents told me that my Great Grandmother Carter and my father's brother were never moved. They said that when they started digging up the graves, the coffins were rotten and the bones were mixed so that you could not tell which bones belonged to what grave. So many of the people decided just to leave the bodies there. |
Some of the names that gave me information for this list: |
Willman Mons Carter of Pima, Arizona |
Polly Matthews Carter of Pima, Arizona |
Mrs. William L. Kieffer of Pima, Arizona |
Clara Allred Larson of Pima, Arizona |
Laura Christensen Alger of Safford, Arizona |
Millie East Kelly of Safford, Arizona |
Mildred C. Olsen |
Alton Welker |
Surname | Name | DOB | DOD | Comments |
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Allred | (little girl) | 29 Jul 1889 | child | Parents: John Warren Allred & Almedia Jane Boyd |
Allred | Almedia Jane Boyd | 19 Mar 1865 | 24 Jul 1890 | Parents: John David Boyd & Victoria Hubbard Husband: John Warren Allred |
Ballard | Issac Riley | 22 Nov 1869 | adult | Born: Payson, Utah Brother of Harriet Ballard Kieffer who is buried at Glenbar Cemetery, Glenbar, Arizona. |
Ballard | William Henry | 1 Mar 1875 | adult | Born: Provo, Utah Half-brother of Harriet Ballard Kieffer who is buried at Glenbar Cemetery, Glenbar, Arizona. |
Carter | Edwin Lavan Jr. | 24 Jan 1890 | 20 Mar 1890 | Born: Matthewsville, Arizona Parents: Edwin Lavan Carter & Betsy Larson Died: From the effects of measles |
Carter | Sarah York | 25 Aug 1812 | 8 Sep 1888 | Born: at Bathel, Oxford, Main Parents: Peter York & Abiah Russell Husband: William Furlsbury Carter She lived in Nauvoo, Illinois at the time of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. She came with one of the earliest companies of Saints to the Salt Lake Valley. In the fall of 1883 they pioneered their way to Arizona with a company of several other families. She drove one of the covered wagons all the way from Santaquin, Utah to the Gila Valley. |
East | Edward Wallace | 11 Oct 1814 | 30 May 1884 | Born: Virginia Parents: Thomas East & Sarah Graves Wife: Willmirth Metilda Greer |
Ford | Elzadie Emeline | 2 Dec 1827 | 20 Dec 1887 | |
Kempton | Delia Caroline | 5 Feb 1881 | 9 Feb 1884 | Born: Brigham City, Navajo, Arizona Parents: Alvin Bradford Kempton & Sarah Jane Curtis |
Kempton | Zetta Jane | 28 Nov 1875 | 4 Feb 1884 | Born: Payson, Payson, Utah Parents: Alvin Bradford Kempton & Sarah Jane Curtis |
Langston | Sarah Wilmoth Junell | 8 Nov 1826 | 25 Aug 1885 | Born: Halifax, Halifax, Virginia She came to Arizona in 1883 and lived in the small community of Graham. She was buried on 26 Aug 1885. |
Larson | Ellen Bertha | 8 Jan 1887 | 18 Feb 1888 | Mons Larson & Olivia Lorentina Eklund are buried in the Glenbar Cemetery, but they had two little girls that died when they lived at Matthewsville. Where they were buried is unknown. Possibly they were left in this Old Pima Cemetery. |
Mary Ann | 24 Jul 1886 | 12 Oct 1889 | ||
Larson | Zelpha Elizabeth | 17 Dec 1885 | 15 Aug 1886 | Born: Pima, Arizona Parents: Lehi Larson, Sr. & Letitia Freeman Carter |
Many thanks to my dear friend Bonnie Briscoe!
For her support, encouragement and sense of fun!
Email contact: Melissa Sanders | Last modified on 8 October 2004. |