Simeon Cemetery

Simeon Cemetery No unauthorized commercial use may be made of this material
© 2000-2011 DJH
Simeon Cemetery
Located on the P.H.Young Ranch 25 miles south of Valentine.
Section 12, Range 29, Township 31.

The well-kept Simeon Cemetery continues to reflect community pride and the philosophy "We take care of our own". The Simeon Cemetery is silent testamony of that pride. Located on a grassy knoll 25 miles south of Valentne, Ne. on th P.H.Young ranch, it is surrounded by rangeland and cattle, but eight strands of barbed wire insure that cattle will not trespass. Cedar tress rise to lofty heights on twisted trunks and the lower branches fan out in a diameter of 40 feet. Iris beds, some planted 75 years ago, surround the weather-streaked stones. Native grasses carpet the cemetery in a dense sod and continuous maintenance is quite apparent. A tall white stone marks the first recorded grave---John Hobbs, 1834-1887. The family plot includes the graves of his wife, Sarah, and seven children, each marked with a headstone. The plot is enclosed by an ornate iron fence. It was not until 1891, however that W.D. Morgareidge had C.G.Patterson, county surveyor, establishe the cemetery boundaries. Morgareidge donated the land and filed an official document to that effect to the county clerk, Oct. 31 of that year at 4 p.m. Another white marble stone surrounded by another iron fnece notes the Carson plot. John Carson took a homestead in 1882 in what became the Simeon community. His wife's name is carved on one side of the stone and his son, Alvin, on the other. Alvin drowned in an alkali lake April 20,1887. P.H.Young filed a homestead less than a mile from the cemetery in 1901. In 1904, Solomon Ellis, merchant and landowner, took Young's place on the chain while surveying land and was struck by lightning. Ellis was buried in the little cemetery which was included in land that Young later bought from Morgareidge. Stella Young told her children in later years how she and her husband handled the buriel of infants during the horse and buggy days. Mrs Young lined wooden raisen boxes with cotton batting and satin for a coffin while her husband prepared the grave and often conducted graveside services. "A community takes care of its own", she would say. Young's trademark was building long lasting fences. In 1947, he enlarged the cemetery and refenced the area with osage posts set 10 feet apart with eight strands of barbed wire. Buriel continued on through the years and the community gathered to groom the cemetery prior to each Memorial Day. In 1960, Young turned his records over to a daughter, Georgia Lord. That May, the entire community completely renovated the cemetery under the guidance of Frank Reece, Young's son-in-law. By using the original map and added research, it was learned that instead of four, there were actually five rows of 20x30 foot lots and four 10 foot allys. Cemetery markers were then placed at the corner of each of the 30 lots, stones straightened and cement markers replaced the cedar post markers which had deteriorated. Stone and petrified wood, often used to mark a baby's grave, were uncovered from the sand and recorded to make a total of 58 graves. Morgareidge established the post office in June of 1885 and named it for his brother, Simeon. That November Elias Stilwell was named postmaster. After the post office was moved, Stillwell's son,Rivers, and his other children, carried the mail from Simeion to Conterra. In 1926, Rivers Stilwell died a short time after preparing a grave for his little grandson, Forrest, son of Carl and Rossa Schleve. They were the first of the 11 members to be interred in the Stilwell family plot. While mowing hay in 1930, Carl Schleve found cedar seedlings growing on the meadow and transplanted three of them to the cemetery. Rosa Schleve Gillespie was buried in the Stilwell plot 1983. Georgia and Elver Lord carefully checked plot boundries and four of P.H.Young's decendants prepared the grave,grandsons, Bobby Lord, Bud Reece, Paul Young and great grandson, Kevin Reece. They take care of their own.
This story was written and donated by Marianne Beel of Valentine, Ne.

NAME	BIRTH	DEATH
Bennett, Infant child of Richard Bennett		06-1947
Bennett, Charles W.	12-09-1849	08-25-1931
Bennett, Etta(dau of C.W.& Nellie)	No dates
Betts, infant(child of C.W.)		08-07-1899
Blakely, Baby(child of Sandy & Rita Thompson Blakely)		1903
Brown, Mrs. John E.	09-26-1893	11-21-1911
Carson, Addie Jones(wife of Samuel L. Carson)	07-30-1868	10-10-1889
Carson,Alva B.	05-10-1870	03-20-1887
Carson, William Guy(husband #1 ???, #2of Mary Ann Baird m.1877 )	11-19-1837	06-06-1899
Cohee, Ethel(dau of Willard& Lura)	1899	1900
Cohee, Lloyd(son of Willard& Lura)	1896	1898
Cohee, Lura Ellen	1861	1901
Cornelius, Mary Sylvia	1835	03-19-1928
Dailey, Dennis		11-29-1894
Daniels, L.F.(Baby)	No dates
Davis, Gouverneure Morris(veteran)(Father)(hus of Rosetta Mabel Scott)(son of William & Marguerite Swarthout Davis)	12-03-1834	04-01-1898	Queensburg, NY
Davis, Minnie E.	No dates
Davis, Ralph N.	07-02-1872	03-08-1975
Davis, Rosetta Mabel Scott(Mother)	06-08-1835	12-06-1913	Wyoming, county, NY
Ellis, Solomon Linville	02-26-1865	05-31-1905
Galligher, Garnet Alice Stilwell(wife of Rivers Galligher)	01-30-1911	1930
Garringer, J.E.		03-11-1895
Gillespie, Rossa Schleve	1906	1983
Griggs, John C.	no dates
Hannaman, Thomas	07-26-1812	06-28-1891
Hobbs, Charles D.	06-06-1872	12-29-1921
Hobbs, Charlotte A. Jennings	11-24-1861	08-20-1888
Hobbs, Edgar	04-05-1876	12-29-1948
Hobbs, Eva	03-23-1881	02-102-1945
Hobbs, Gilbert S.	04-12-1865	08-21-1902
Hobbs, Harvey	04-24-1868	10-29-1942
Hobbs, John F.	10-12-1834	08-18-1887
Hobbs, Sarah A.	02-24-1840	05-19-1917
Hobbs, William D.	11-14-1869	??-15-1943
Leach, Louis(hus of Joan Galligher)	?	?
McWalker, ???	no dates
Oliver, Mrs. Charles	no dates
Phillips, Twins (of Archie & Cora Collins Phillips)	No dates
Rogers, Venus(Baby)	Petrified unreadable marker
Rounds, Cress	no dates	age 3
Rowley, Baby	no dates
Somers, Ronald Geoffrey	10-06-1940	10-08-1940
Schleve, Carl Stilwell(infant)		06-08-1927
Schleve, Forrest Herman(infant son of Carl)(grandson of Ernest Stilwell)	07-19-1926	11-19-1926
Schleve, George(grandson of E.R.&Bertha Stilwell)	1936	1945
Stilwell, Bertha Rivers(dau of Adam & Lucy Martin)	11-16-1880	06-09-1962
Stilwell, Everett(Fuzzy)(son of Ernest & Bertha)	09-21-1902	1958
Stilwell, Ernest Rivers(hus of Bertha Alice Martin m.1901)	05-08-1874	11-1926	Lyons, KS
Stilwell, Joseph Amos(infant)	01-14-1914	01-14-1914
Stilwell, Ula Rose (infant)	10-11-1916	10-11-1916
Stratton, Amy P.	1824	12-23-1895
Stratton, William W.(hus of Alice Ware Summer m.11-01-1934)(son or William Henry Stratton & Julia Ann Stratton)	09-09-1879	09-21-1974	Bainbridge,now Huntley, NE
Thissell, Oscar S.	10-10-1839	12-09-1913
Thompson, Baby girl		01-14-1915
Thompson,Mrs Andrew	no dates
Thompson, Uriah	1820	1901
Tracewell, Mary N.(wife of S.P.)	1871	1902
Vaughn, baby(child of Jim& Ruby)	no dates
Vaughn, Baby(child of Jim& Ruby)	no dates

3 unknown graves+ 1 unknown grave , possibly Alvie Carson who drowned in Big Alkali in 1887.
Names, dates and pictures for this cemetery were donated by Mrs. Ruth Harms, who walked this cemetery in May of 1974. We apologize for any errors in transcribing or reading of information. For corrections please contact the Cherry County Coordinator.

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02-2003