1185 Concord St. N. Suite 218
South St. Paul, MN 55075-1187
(651) 455-9057
mngs.org
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Minnesota Genealogical Society
1185 Concord St. N. Suite 218 South St. Paul, MN 55075-1187 (651) 455-9057 mngs.org |
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June 2006 The Minnesota Genealogical Society is proud to provide you with this inventory of cemeteries in the State of Minnesota. You will find detailed location information for each cemetery, as well as bibliographic information for any burial transcriptions that were available between 2001-2006. [Counties were completed at various times during this five-year period; always check for newer information at the local historical or genealogical society!] Please read the starting information, below, understand data limitations. Sincere thanks to the many volunteers who worked on this major project. Names of the county volunteers are indicated below. Names of other key contributors follow the team list, below.
For additional information: The project team has also updated the "Cemetery Notebooks", located in the "Cemetery Section" at the MGS library. You will often find additional information in these notebooks. The information MAY include: photographs, detailed township and cemetery maps; cemetery history; newspaper articles about the cemetery, or cemetery projects in that area; and donated burial information. Published cemetery transcriptions that have been donated to MGS are also found in the "Cemetery Section" of the library, not in the county section. How the information was compiled: A survey form was mailed to every courthouse and genealogical or historical society in the State of Minnesota. Each volunteer personally contacted local societies in the county for assistance, and then checked a variety of sources known to contain information on Minnesota cemeteries. These included: maps; the U.S. Geological Survey; Wiley Pope's "Cemeteries in Print"; the old MGS Cemetery Notebooks; WPA Survey of Minnesota cemeteries; the "Dalby Burial Files"; the "Kirchner Burial Files"; the 2001 Mortuary Science survey, compiled by the State of MN; cemetery transcriptions published in the Minnesota Genealogist; a search of the Internet; church, county and town histories; and local directories, if available. Volunteers checked card catalogs at MGS, the Family History Library; and the Minnesota Historical Society. Many volunteers also visited their county, and the cemeteries in their county, and contacted area churches, funeral homes, local societies and the county courthouse. Each volunteer used unique methods to communicate with others, and they encountered various responses. Accordingly, the results county-to-county may vary. The date of completion for each county also varies. Some were completed as early as 2001, but most have been completed in 2005 and 2006. It must be noted that no one source was found to be complete for the State of Minnesota, even if it appeared to be so. For example, the USGS contains about 1/3 of the known cemeteries in Minnesota. EVERY source we checked contained errors! It was often very difficult to reconcile conflicting sources; we did our best. Uncertainties and anomalies are noted in the notes field. This project has been planned as a win-win for the MGS, local societies and Minnesota researchers. We intentionally took into account the fact that many local genealogical and historical societies sell books of burial transcriptions as fundraisers for their societies. We have not included that actual burial data here, but we have given you full information on how to locate burial information for your family. You are strongly encouraged to contact the appropriate local genealogical or historical society, as well as the courthouse. We are often asked to define "burial transcription." There are many different kinds of burial transcriptions. Some have been created when an individual or a group "walked" a cemetery, and recorded the information on visible tombstones. This transcription will only include stones that were visible on a particular day. Some of these transcriptions include the whole cemetery, and some are for portions of a cemetery. The transcriber may or may not have recorded ALL of the information on the tombstones. [Care is needed when using these compilations. Sexton records should be checked. Be sure to ask the person or group responsible for the cemetery about unmarked graves, which are common. ] Other transcriptions are more thorough because the stones have been checked against death certificates at the courthouse, and sometimes even against obituaries, census records, etc. Always ask who did the transcription, when it was created, and what was included. Understand that any transcription contains errors. Transcriptions are simply finding aids. Always seek original death and burial records! For excellent and detailed county maps: contact the MN Dept. of Transportation, and ask for the large size county map. MNDOT is located at 395 John Ireland Blvd. [Room G-19, Map Sales, Mail Stop 260], St. Paul MN 55155. For more information about cemeteries in general: Your Guide to Cemetery Research, Sharon DeBartolo Carmack, Cincinnati: Betterway Books, 2002 [This excellent guide includes chapters on locating cemeteries and records of death; searching a cemetery; gravestone art; American burial customs and folkways; ethnic and religious funeral customs; cemetery projects and preservation; a historical timeline for epidemics and disasters; a historical medical glossary; cemetery transcription forms; and more.] For help with Native American Burials, contact the appropriate tribal office, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. For information on the preservation of unplatted burial grounds or Indian Mounds in Minnesota, contact the State Archeologist at Fort Snelling. Team Members, by county: Aitkin- Barbara & Mike Macioch Anoka- Wendell Evans Becker- Lisa Trembley Beltrami- Cecelia McKeig Benton- Melissa Brawley Big Stone- Ann Lundberg Blue Earth- Sandy Thalman Brown- Barb Heller Carlton- Marlene Zalar Carver- Rod Nordberg Cass- Cecelia McKeig Chippewa- Linda Balk Chisago- Naomi Bloom Clay- Marijane Tessman Clearwater- Cec McKeig Cook- Donna Hamersly Carlson Cottonwood- Marcia Paulson Crow Wing- Lucille Kirkeby & John Van Essen Dakota- Marilyn Brink Dodge- Wendell Evans Douglas- Ginny Swartz Faribault- Diane Oldfather [deceased] Fillmore- Janis Martin Freeborn- Diane Oldfather [deceased] Goodhue- Sue Nolan Grant- Rynda Neff Carlis Hennepin- Deb Dahlby Houston- Gay McClellan Hubbard- Darryl Hensel Isanti- Jodi Magnuson Itasca- Cecelia McKeig Jackson- Marcia Paulson Kanabec- Wendy Winkelman Kandiyohi- Bev Elmshauser Kittson- Marcia J. Johnson Koochiching- Anna Claxton Lac Qui Parle- Floie Vane Lake- Donna Carlson Lake of the Woods- Stew Thornley Le Sueur- Joel Randolph Lincoln- Wendell R. Evans Lyon- Linda Balk Mahnomen- Donna Bahls Marshall- Marcia J. Johnson Martin- Marcia Paulson McLeod- Gerry Stifter Meeker- Ray Ensing Mille Lacs- Kris Lundgren Henriksen & Judy Howard Morrison- Wendell Evans Mower- Sharon Babcock Murray- Marcia Paulson Nicollet- Cindy Broderick Noble- Marcia Paulson Norman- Deb Jacobson Olmsted- Sandy Thalman Otter Tail- Lisa Trembley Pennington- Cec McKieg Pine- Cec McKieg Pipestone- Marcia Paulson Polk- Cec McKieg Pope- Pat Dalager Ramsey- Jean Havlik Red Lake- Cec Mc Kieg Redwood- Linda Balk Renville- Linda Balk Rice- Joan Hrdlichka Rock- Marcia Paulson Roseau- Pamela Jean Mix Scott- Betty Dols & Gay McClellan Sherburne- Jodi Magnuson Sibley- Mary Leonard St. Louis- Betty Joyce Stearns- Deana Drake Steele- Joanne Hintz Stevens- Delores Bruns Swift- Marie Nordberg Todd- Cathie J. Reasoner Traverse- Richard Gebhart Wabasha- Mary Bellingham Wadena- Rod Nordberg Waseca- Sandy Thalman Washington- Joan Hrdlichka Watonwan- Marcia Paulson Wilkin- Richard Gebhart Winona- Linda Rice Wright- Marcia Paulson Yellow Medicine- Marie Nordberg Acknowledgments- Special thanks are also extended to these contributors: Aitkin County Historical Society, Mary Rea Anoka Historical Society, Marilyn Anderson Apple Valley City Hall, Andrew K. Pederson [Dakota County] Beaver Bay Historical Society, Edward Maki Jr. [for Lake County] Mary Bellingham, Goodhue County Harrison Benjamin, Omodt Family Cemetery Cass County Museum, Renee Geving Dorothy Chandler, Wabasha County Cook County Historical Society, Pat Zankman [for Cook County] Cavallin Funeral Home [for cemeteries in Cook and Lake Counties] David Cross, assistance in downloading addresses from the US postal system John and Jan Dalby [assisted with information statewide] Faribault County Historical Society Carolyn Frisch, Crow Wing County Joyce Gardner, Le Sueur and Nicollet Counties Paula Goblirch, assistance in promoting the project in MGS publications Dixie Hanson, assistance coding zip codes to county name Jill Hopland, Anoka and Sherburne Counties Houston County Historical Society, Mrs. Anita Palmquist Ralph Kirchner, burial transcriptions for 18 MN counties Jean LeGried, Freeborn County Jackson County Historical Society, Ed Carlson Jean Jensen, MGS Librarian, for assistance with catalog issues Little Falls Granite Works, Scott Nagel [assistance with many MN counties] Marcia Johnson, Marshall County Mary Johnson, Kittson County Margie Meier, Mower County Milaca Community Library, Mary Jane Bridge [Mille Lacs County] Mortuary Science Department, State of Minnesota Mower County Genealogical Society, Karen Kendall Northfield Genealogical Society, Luana Bauer [Rice County] Nancy Powell, Methodist Church cemeteries in Minnesota Rice County Genealogical Society Jim Robasse, Scott County Donna Rhodes, Steele County Roseau County Historical Society, Charleen Haugen John Van Essen, Crow Wing County Eleanor Waha, Aiken County Ron Zurek, County Coordinator, MNGenWeb [Benton, Mille Lacs and Kandiyohi] Prepared by Darlene C. Joyce, MA CGsm Project Coordinator | ||||||||||||||||||||||