May 31, 2024
June is the perfect time for visiting cemeteries. Most genealogists go to honor their ancestors and to add possible new names to their family tree. However, during this season there’s another reason to visit cemeteries – especially old cemeteries.
In the days before perpetual care, cemeteries were usually cared for by the families of those who were buried there. Caring for the graves of loved ones often included planting their favorite flowers near the graves. Most cemeteries are maintained by a private company or a governmental entity nowadays, and no one plants flowers by individual graves.
However, many flowers are long-lived, and in June roses, irises, and peonies can be seen flowering near graves in old cemeteries. If those graves are your family, it’s probable that someone who cared for the person buried there planted the flowers.
Even if there are no flowers near your family’s graves, the flowers planted in old cemeteries can give you a glimpse of the kind of plants your ancestors grew. Most of the flowers in cemeteries were tough and required little maintenance. If they couldn’t survive on their own, they disappeared. The flowers we see today have often been growing in the same spot for a hundred years or more. Even if someone tended them in the early days, they’re long gone by now.
Whether or not you have anyone buried in the old cemeteries in your area, they’re still worth a visit this time of year. Grandview Cemetery in Fort Collins and Fairmont Cemetery in Denver are two that I enjoy. Although the irises and peonies are gorgeous, the stars of most old cemeteries are the roses. They’re worth the trip.
You’ll notice that the rosebushes at old cemeteries tend to be large. Many are six or eight feet tall and often sprawl for several yards in all directions. Thorns on these giant bushes tend to be sharp and prolific. Picking a blossom from these bushes can be dangerous since they’re so well-armored.
Unlike the modern hybrids that we grow now, the roses in old cemeteries only bloom once a year. They do, however, put on a major show for the week or two they bloom. Most of them are sweet-scented and perfume the air for yards around them.
Harrison’s Yellow is a good example of the type of rose that can be found in old cemeteries. Harrison’s Yellow is a rosebush that was developed in the early 19th century. It was tough as nails and transplanted easily so it went along with pioneers as they travelled west. It is often known as the Yellow Rose of Texas or the Oregon Rose since women carried starts of it to those locales.
Back then, nearly every house had a bush. With today’s smaller, more manicured yards, Harrison’s Yellow roses are seldom seen except in older neighborhoods and cemeteries. Because the roses were unusual as well as tough, they were many people’s favorite rose – hence their popularity in cemeteries.
I know that Harrison’s Yellow roses were my great grandmother’s favorite flower, and they still grow on her grave. Maybe they were a favorite of one of your ancestors as well. Take a ride to an older neighborhood or cemetery, and you’ll be sure to see their bright yellow blossoms.
Carol Stetser
Researcher
Larimer County Genealogical Society