Cemeteries of Yavapai County

The state of Arizona is filled with ghost towns, ruins of once-bustling towns that simply no longer exist. Many of these were mining communities, and the towns vanished when the mines dried up.

Yavapai County has quite a few ghost towns, and this chapter focuses on a handful of their cemeteries. After the towns ceased to exist, most of their cemeteries fell into total decay and neglect, and in a few cases, evidence of them disappeared altogether.

Happily, some civic groups, Boy Scout troops, and other organizations have tried to clean up and restore many ghost town cemeteries in recent times. The Arizona Pioneer Cemetery Research Project (APCRP), headed by Neal Du Shane, has done extensive work in documenting burials in such graveyards.

Ghost town ruins and cemeteries are usually in remote locations, often inaccessible to normal vehicles, so visitors must use caution.

Little remains of the once-prosperous mining town of Octave in the Antelope region of southern Yavapai County, with the exception of a few building foundations and a cemetery. Boy Scouts and other concerned researchers care for the site.

The cemetery has no named headstones on any of its graves, although some of those interred have been identified through official records, burial records, newspaper obituaries, and even dowsing. Groups such as the Arizona Pioneer Cemetery Research Project (APCRP) have done much work at sites such as these.

This grave has been identified by the APCRP as the burial place of George M. “Yaqui” Wilson, a stage stop owner who was murdered by William Partridge in 1875. Above is Neal Du Shane, who made the identification on behalf of the APCRP.

Homemade metal crosses mark some of the graves in this cemetery.

Parker Anderson stands by the grave identified by the APCRP as the burial place of Froilana Lucero, who committed suicide in 1900. Years earlier, in 1886, her brothers are believed to have murdered the notorious miner and businessman Charles P. Stanton, in retaliation for Stanton’s unwanted affections toward her.

Visiting sites like this can be a profound experience, as one realizes that most of those buried here are completely forgotten, yet once, they were here on Earth, the same as we are.

As with many ghost towns, everyone left once the mining ended, except for the dead.

The ghost town of Weaver, named for legendary pioneer Pauline Weaver, lies not far from Octave and today consists only of ruins and a cemetery. These two photographs show the Weaver Cemetery in 1948, which was already a while after the town was abandoned. Below is the marker for Adolfo Olea, who only lived for six months in 1901. (Both photographs, courtesy of Sharlot Hall Museum.)

Here are two more images of the Weaver Cemetery from 1948. These photographs are historically invaluable, as none of the tombstones and fences seen here are still in existence. (Courtesy of Sharlot Hall Museum.)

This photograph of the cemetery was taken in 1964 by Vera Hangartner, who had moved to the nearby area with her family and often explored the desert with her daughter Darla Anderson. The image shows the Weaver Cemetery overgrown in weeds and brush. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

This image also was captured in 1964 by Vera Hangartner. Both of these photographs still show some original markers that are no longer extant at the cemetery. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

Today, each of the graves bears a white cross, placed there by Scout troops who help tend the site. No named headstones remain.

As with Octave, virtually nothing remains of the town of Weaver except for some building foundations and the cemetery, cared for by groups such as the APCRP.

Neal Du Shane of the APCRP has identified this grave as being that of John Timmerman, who was murdered in 1877 in an unsolved crime. Area folklore contends that the murder was masterminded by Charles P. Stanton.

Neal Du Shane of APCRP has identified this grave as being that of William Segna, who was murdered by Vincente Lucero in 1898. This crime caused the Arizona Journal Miner newspaper call for the town of Weaver, which had become known for much lawlessness, to be wiped off the map.

Most visitors to these ghost town cemeteries are usually tourists, taphophiles, and occasional individual miners who still work small independent claims in the region.

The current fence around the Weaver Cemetery was apparently built by a civic club in 1983.

The mountains, quite unchanged since this area was inhabited by busy mining towns, still overlook and guard the area.

These photographs of the ruins of the Weaver Stagecoach Stop were taken almost adjacent to the cemetery.

This is the only authenticated photograph of Charles P. Stanton, standing in front of his store in the town that bore his name. The town of Stanton, located near Weaver and Octave, once consisted of several hundred people, mostly miners on the legendary Rich Hill, which overlooked the town. Charles P. Stanton has a villainous reputation and was considered the town boss. (Courtesy of Sharlot Hall Museum.)

Records show that the town of Stanton had a cemetery, but all physical traces of it have been vanquished by time. However, the APCRP believes they have discovered it along Antelope Creek. In this photograph, Parker Anderson stands by the spot believed to be the grave of Charles P. Stanton.

In the far northwest corner of Yavapai County, right on the border of Mohave County, there once was a small town named Nelson. Above, a large lime manufacturing plant sits on the site, but below, nothing remains of the town but a small cemetery.

This burial ground is located on a hillside, and the few visitors that come here are often distracted by noise from the lime plant.

A statue of the Virgin Mary sits encased in this unusual marker for Emma Lerma (1927–1952). Other graves also indicate that the area once had a large Catholic population.

In 1897, a train robbery occurred between Nelson and Peach Springs in Mohave County, perpetrated by the outlaw Fleming “Jim” Parker. His unidentified partner was shot and killed by an express messenger during the robbery and was probably buried unceremoniously in an unmarked grave in this cemetery or nearby. (Courtesy of Lois Schmittinger.)

The ravaged hills from the lime plant are a striking contrast to the Nelson Cemetery. (Courtesy of Lois Schmittinger.)

The former mining town of Humbug lies in the far southern region of the Bradshaw Mountains in Yavapai County. The mines closed in 1934, and nothing is left except ruins, which are on private land and should not be visited without permission. A caretaker lives on the site. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

A small cemetery exists outside of the Humbug ruins. Four graves are marked with rocks instead of headstones, although many more of the town’s residents are believed to be buried in unmarked graves. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

This group visited the Humbug Cemetery on March 2, 2013, when the owners held an open house. Neal Du Shane (center) is pictured addressing the crowd. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

The large pile of rocks underneath this saguaro cactus in Humbug Cemetery is believed to be a grave. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

This is the grave of Newt White, a former caretaker of the Humbug ghost town, who died in 1997. It was his wish to be buried in the Humbug Cemetery, and he certainly is the most recent burial here. (Courtesy of Parker Anderson.)

In the southern Bradshaw Mountains, there once was a stagecoach stop operated by Alfred Spence and his wife, Matilda, known as Palace Station. This 1880s photograph of the stop shows Matilda Spence standing in the center. (Courtesy of Sharlot Hall Museum.)

The stage stop had a small cemetery, as most such areas did, since it was often difficult to transport a deceased person into a larger town like Prescott at the time. This undated photograph was probably taken in the 1960s, when Palace Station was already a ghost town. (Courtesy of Sharlot Hall Museum.)

The grave of Richard J. Lambuth (1826–1896), father of Matilda Spence, is seen in this photograph, probably taken in the 1960s. (Courtesy of Sharlot Hall Museum.)

This is the old stage stop as it stands today. The house is now used as quarters for forest rangers, and the site is on private US National Forest land.

This is the small Palace Station Cemetery as seen today. The burials are believed to be all of Spence family members; it is also believed there have been no burials here since 1903.

A new headstone for Richard J. Lambuth was installed in recent years by Spence family descendants (although his old marker also remains) to commemorate his service in the Confederate army during the Civil War.

Records show who is buried here, but there are very few markers on the graves anymore. The Palace Station burial ground is actually more of a family cemetery than a community graveyard.