Pioneer Cemetery

Look for the lilacs, and you've found the graves. Between 1860 and 1879 this ground, where three farms met, served as an informal burial plot; a child of Joseph Thompson was the first laid here. But the farmers who owned the land objected to its use as a cemetery, and in time most of the bodies were moved to Provo's proper burial ground. A few stayed behind — among them two children of Mr. Rasmussen, one of the original landowners. No headstones mark them now. The lilac bushes someone planted at their graves are the only monuments left.

What the plaque says

During the years between 1860 and 1879 this plot of ground was used as a burial place for the pioneers. It was the junction where three farms joined. A child of Joseph Thompson was the first person interred, but as the owners objected to their land being used as burial grounds some of the bodies were moved to the present cemetery but several remained here. Among them two children of a Mr. Rasmussen, one of the original owners. Their graves are marked by lilac bushes.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Bridal Veil Falls — 7.0 mi
  A dramatic double waterfall cascading 607 feet into Provo Canyon
• Sundance Mountain Resort — 11 mi
  Robert Redford's intimate, arts-minded ski resort on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos, in the North Fork of Provo Canyon.
• Aspen Grove — 11 mi
  The mountain-base trailhead for Mount Timpanogos and Stewart Falls
• Alpine Loop Summit — 11 mi
  The 8,000-foot high point of the Alpine Loop, face to face with Mount Timpanogos

More markers nearby

• Saw and Grist Mills — 0.9 mi
• Utah Lake Fishing Industry — 1.2 mi
• George A. Smith Provo Pioneer Village- Living in the Frontier 1849 to 1872 in Utah County — 1.2 mi
• Settlement of Provo — 1.2 mi