The Oldest Cemetery in Jackson, Michigan
Jackson has its fair share of old cemeteries, that’s for sure...but which one is the oldest in town?
That would be Mt. Evergreen (also called Greenwood Cemetery), a 25-acre graveyard on Greenwood Avenue.
Mt. Evergreen Cemetery was established in 1843, originally covering eleven acres. Twenty years later in 1863, James McNeil sold 14 acres of his property to be used to expand the cemetery, which brought the total cemetery acreage up to 25.
During the summer of 1864, the city pushed Morrell Street further north to make room for the soldiers’ section of the cemetery.
In 1873, the Greenwood Wall was built, lasting for 107 years until it was rebuilt in 1980, using the original stonework.
Unfortunately for descendants of those buried in Mt. Evergreen pre-1917, a fire destroyed all those records. They had to be re-written and recorded, but only by using the information they took from the headstones.
Mt. Evergreen Cemetery has been an entry in the State Register of Historic Sites since 1988. Scroll down a way to see a short photo gallery...
Mt. Evergreen: Jackson's Oldest Cemetery
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