Photo Story: Fall Colors of the Linkville Cemetery
/The fall colors are strong at the Linkville Cemetery this weekend.
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According to the Klamath County Historical Society, the Linkville Pioneer Cemetery established on 20 acres purchased from the Crouch Dairy for $40. The location on this hillside was considered “way out in the country” at the time.
The International Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery, established about 1880, was already in existence. In the early 1950’s the IOOF Cemetery was deeded to the City of Klamath Falls, and today the two cemeteries are considered one.
Residents of the town of Linkville felt the need for a name change to reflect the growing community. In 1893 Klamath Falls came into existence and continues to be the largest community in the area.
Early graves near the Cemetery entrance were moved from an earlier Cemetery located near the corner of Third and Pine St. The earliest known graves are that of Earnest L. Smith who died on March 31, 1869, his sister Sara M. Smith who died on October 21, 1872 and Henry F. Miller who died in 1872 on the first day of the Modoc Indian War.
In 1931, after 46 years of neglect a group of citizens banded together to organize improvements. The stone gates at the Cemetery entrances were constructed of native stone, the Cemetery was fenced and 100 trees were planted. At that time a monument was erected near the entrance honoring the 300 unknown pioneers that were moved from the earlier cemetery.
Veterans of the Civil War, the Modoc Indian War, the Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam rest here.
A walk through the Cemetery will bring to mind many pioneers of the Klamath Basin, including Melhase, Schallock, Biehn, Applegate, Gerber, Murdock, Baldwin and Summers to name a few.
