Finding the cemetery where your relatives are buried in the Denver area can be a challenge. The earliest cemeteries, Mount Prospect and Acacia, have been moved and their records have not survived. To complicate matters, death records in Denver were not required until 1900 and they were not consistently recorded until about 1925. Other sources which can help fill in the gaps are listed at the bottom of the page.
Acacia Cemetery
Acacia Cemetery, located in the town of Highland between what is now 29th and 32nd Avenues and Tejon and Zuni Streets, was purchased in 1866 by Union Masonic Lodge No. 7, Denver Masonic Lodge No. 5, and Denver Chapter No. 12, Royal Arch Masons. The cemetery was opened and lots were sold in May of 1867. The southwest quarter of the tract was sold to the Improved Order of Odd Fellows, I.O.O.F. The cemetery was open until the late 1870’s when the bodies were removed to City Cemetery. In 1872 sections for the Masons and Odd Fellows were set aside in City Cemetery. In 1893 the bodies were again moved, this time to Riverside Cemetery. In 1881 the entire tract of Acacia Cemetery was sold to George Tritch who filed a plat under the name of the “Union Addition” in the City of Denver.
Arvada Cemetery
Started in 1889. 5581 Independence St. Arvada, CO 80002
Chapel Hill Cemetery
Started in 1951. 6601 S. Colorado Blvd. Littleton, CO 80121
Crown Hill Cemetery
Started in 1907. 7777 W. 29th Ave. Wheat Ridge, CO 80215
Crown Hill Cemetery Burials
List of burials at Crown Hill Cemetery from 1908-1950.
Eastlawn Cemetery
Started in 1959. 19600 Smith Road Aurora, CO 80231
Fairmount Cemetery
Started in 1890. Fairmount Cemetery, 430 S. Quebec St. Denver, CO 80231.
Fairmount Sexton Records 1891 – 1953
The Fairmount Sexton Records 1891–1953 are arranged in rough “alphabetical order” by age, sex, race, date of burial, and other information.
Fort Logan National Cemetery
Started in 1889. 3698 S. Sheridan Blvd Denver, CO 80235
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
Fort Logan National Cemetery Tombstone Photographs
Photographs of some of the gravestones.
Goldon Cemetery
Started in 1873. Highway 6th and Ulysses Golden, CO 80401
Goldon Hill Cemetery
This Jewish cemetery was started in 1908. 12000 W. Colfax Ave. Lakewood, CO 80215
Hampden Cemetery
Started in 1963. 8600 E. Hampden Ave. Denver, CO 80231
Highland Cemetery
Started in 1951. 10201 North Grant St. Thornton, CO 80233
Littleton Cemetery
Started in 1864. 6155 S. Prince Littleton, CO 80120
Mount Cavalry Cemetery
Mount Calvary was the Roman Catholic section of Mount Prospect and later City Cemetery. In 1890 Denver was granted permission to use the cemetery lands for a park and the Diocese of Denver secured an injunction preventing enforcement of the order against their property. The last burial in Mount Calvary was in 1908. In 1891 Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Wheat Ridge opened and many of the bodies from Mount Calvary were removed there. In 1950 the remaining 8,600 bodies were removed to Mount Olivet. Today this is the site of the Denver Botanic Gardens.
Calvary Cemetery Listing 1889-1893
Calvary Cemetery Listings are an index to lot purchases in Denver’s first Roman Catholic Cemetery from 1889 to 1893.
Mount Lindo Cemetery
Started in 1963. 5928 South Turkey Creek Road Morrison, CO 80465
Mount Nebo Cemetery
This Jewish cemetery was started in 1902. 11658 E. Colfax Ave. Aurora, CO 80010
Mount Olivet Cemetery
This Catholic cemetery was started in 1891. 12801 West 44th Ave. Wheat Ridge, CO 80033
Mount Prospect Cemetery
Mount Prospect was the first organized cemetery in Denver. It was located on an old Arapahoe Indian burial ground, today this area is known as Cheesman Park. This site was selected by William Larimer and William Clancey during the winter of 1858-1859. The Kansas Territorial Legislature granted a charter on 27 February 1860. Jack O’Neill, a victim of a gunfight, was the first burial on 30 March 1859. The cemetery was eventually divided into sections for Roman Catholic burials (Mount Calvary), Masonic and Improved Order of Odd Fellows, Jewish (Hebrew Burying and Prayer Ground) and Mount Prospect or Prospect Hill. Mount Prospect, later called City Cemetery, had areas set aside for burials of paupers, Chinese, and members of the Grand Army of the Republic a Civil War Union veterans organization.
In 1872 the City of Denver applied to Congress for title to the land. On 15 November 1873 Denver gained ownership and Mount Prospect became City Cemetery. Riverside Cemetery opened in 1876 and burials in City Cemetery declined. In 1890 Denver was granted permission by Congress to use the land for a park. In 1893 burials were ordered stopped and 788 bodies were removed to Riverside Cemetery. In August 1893 the Denver Park Commission gave notice that families had 90 days to remove their loved ones remains and that after that time no bodies were to be removed as the entire area would be planted in grass. About 4200 bodies from City Cemetery remain beneath the sod of Cheesman Park.
The Jewish section was known as Hebrew Burying and Prayer Ground. The local Jewish congregations did not hold title to their section and were not able to prevent the closure of the cemetery. In 1896 the Hebrew Cemetery Association purchased a section known as Emanuel in Riverside Cemetery. In 1911 Congregation Emanuel purchased 15 acres within Fairmount Cemetery, also called Emanuel. In 1923 the Jewish Cemetery Committee reported that removals from the Hebrew Burying and Prayer Ground had been completed.
Riverside Cemetery
Started in 1876. 5201 Brighton Blvd. Denver, CO 80216
Riverside Cemetery Burial Register Index, 1876 – 1963
The index includes date of burial, name of deceased, age, location of burial and some additional information.
Riverside African-American Burials
Index to over 5240 burial records in Riverside cemetery.
Rose Hill Cemetery
This Jewish cemetery was started in 1892. 6841 E. 62 Ave. Commerce City, CO 80022
Other Death Records
Index to American Woodmen Insurance Ledger: 5 June 1901 to 31 July 1907
Index to life insurance files of insured and beneficiaries 1901 to 1907. American Woodmen’s Life was founded in Denver, Colorado in 1901 as a Fraternal Benefit Society established to provide life insurance for the “un-insurable” Black Community. The register shows in chronological order the name of the insured, “camp and state” of residence, age, name of beneficiary or beneficiaries, and their relationship to the insured. States covered in this first ledger include Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indian Territory [Oklahoma], Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington, D.C. This register represents the first of 40 ledgers. The company went out of business in 1993.
Index to Farmer and Hale Mortuary William D. Nash Mortuary Burial Records 1889-1909
Farmer and Hale Undertakers and Embalmers began business in 1889 at 1619 Tremont. The original registers are individually indexed. The name may be that of the deceased or the person responsible for payment of the funeral arrangements. Each burial entry may contain all or some of the following information. What may be listed include the name of deceased, date of death, race, age in years, months and days, full name, marital status, last place of residence, occupation, gender, and birthplace. The father’s name and birthplace, mother’s name and birthplace, cause of death, attending physician and address, place of burial, cemetery lot or grave number, cemetery section number, place of service, time of service, date of burial, and officiating clergyman. Other information which may have been provided include a description of the casket with the lining, pillow and handles as well as the use of draperies, candelabra, candles, crape, and chairs. Other items of interest include what the body was preserved with, whether the body was washed, dressed or shaved. How many coaches, porters and hearses were used or if the body was shipped to another city for burial there. Other information which may have been included for each entry include the page number of the register and a number of the funeral for that year.
Index to William P. Horan Burial Records, 1900-1956
William P. Horan founded the Horan Mortuary in 1890. The firm was initially a short-lived partnership, called Murphy & Horan. It was located in the old Charles Block at 15th and Curtis Street. About 1893 Horan moved to the old Law Hotel building at 18th and Stout Street. In 1907 W.P. Horan Constructed his third location at 1527 Cleveland Place. The name was changed to W.P. Horan & Son in 1914 when his son W.P. Horan, Jr. joined the business. In 1926 the mortuary was first incorporated under the laws of the state of Colorado and continued to serve the people of Denver as W.P. Horan & Son, Inc. Paul Horan joined his father and brother in 1929 before beginning his own firm of Paul Horan Mortuary. The original registers may contain all or some of the following information. What may be listed include the name of the deceased, date of death, race age in years, month and days, full name, marital status, last place of residence, occupation, gender, and birthplace. The father’s name and birthplace, mother’s name and birthplace, cause of death, attending physician and address, place of burial, cemetery lot or grave number, cemetery section number, place of service, time of service, date of burial, and officiating clergyman. Additional information which may have been provided includes a description of the casket with the lining, pillow and handles as well as the use of draperies, candelabra, candles, crape, and chairs. Other items of interest included what the body was preserved with, whether the body was washed, dressed or shaved. How many coaches, porters and hearses were used or if the body were shipped to another city for burial there.
Denver Obituary Index
Index of obituaries and funeral notices that appeared in the Denver Post or Rocky Mountain News between 1913 and 2016.
Colorado Statesman Index
Index of funeral notices, obituaries, and news articles from the leading weekly newspaper serving the African American community from 1904 to 1954.
Intermountain Jewish News (IJN) Obituary Index
The index is composed of a number of columns of information, most taken directly from the IJN obituary, but many also supplemented from different sources. Associated cemetery (burial) information is also included when that information could be identified in the obituary.
Clipping Files: Obituaries (BCAARL)
An index to obituary newspaper clippings available at the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library.
Rogers and Nash Mortuary Records 1873 – 1979
Index to registers of burial by Rogers and Nash Mortuary.
Trail Index 1908 – 1929: Index to Deaths and Obituaries
Index of articles including profiles and obituaries of pioneers that was published 1908-1929 by the Sons of Colorado.
Denver Public Library microfilm obituaries 1944-1959
Index of all deaths published in the Rocky Mountain News, the Denver Post, and other newspapers for the years 1944-1959.