EDMONDS — Here’s a chance to learn about local history — and some of the the people buried — at the Edmonds Memorial Cemetery and Columbarium.
A “Walk Back in Time” guided tour is planned for 1 p.m. Thursday at the cemetery at 820 15th St SW, Edmonds. The tour is conducted by members of the Cemetery Board, who will be dressed in period costumes.
The tour is divided into three sections and lasts approximately one hour. In addition to the guides there will be several “ghosts” throughout the cemetery telling their life stories including Edmonds founder George Brackett, portrayed by local actor John Hartquist, and Edmonds pioneer Mary Knott Langrill, a laundress and mother of six daughters, played by Betty Deebach Gaeng.
Also on the tour are descendants of Christopher Columbus Cook sharing stories of their great grandfather.
The 6.5-acre cemetery was founded in 1891 by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Lodge. Over the next century numerous owners managed the cemetery until 1982 when Larry Hubbard, an Edmonds businessman, purchased the site and gave it to the city of Edmonds to maintain and operate.
In 1972, the Edmonds Memorial Cemetery was placed on the Washington State Register of Historic Places. Some graves date as far back as the Civil War. The most recent addition to the cemetery is the Columbarium, completed in October 2006 and located in the northeast corner of the grounds.
The tour is free and refreshments will be served. For those who are unable to make the event, self-guided tour brochures are available year-round at the cemetery. For more information call 425-776-1543.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
