FUNERARY GROUNDS: RIVERSIDE CEMETERY
Originally published on June 15, 2020.
Sitting on 77-acres, Riverside Cemetery (Colorado) became designated as a National Historic District in 1992 and is one of Denver’s oldest operating cemeteries. Founded in 1876, Riverside is located near downtown, in the industrial area. In the early 1900’s it was brought into the Fairmount Funeral Home family and is said to be one of the first rural cemeteries in the Rocky Mountain West. (*Read more about the history and creation of rural cemeteries in the Harmony Grove Funerary Ground Post). Known for the wide range of cultures represented at the cemetery (Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, African American, and Russian Orthodox) it is also an official military cemetery, hosting over 1,000 veterans from the civil war to the first gulf war. In 2001, Riverside lost its “handshake agreement'“ to South Platte River water rights and in so, the landscape of the cemetery suffered dramatically. The evergreen trees on site also died due to drought conditions and in the fall and winter of 2008-2009, many of these dead trees fell, damaging monuments and a close by historic private mausoleum. In 2008, the cemetery was listed as one of Colorado’s “Most Endangered Places” by the Colorado Preservation, Inc. Riverside continues to worry if other trees will continue to do damage and certainly as a visitor, the bareness can be felt.
Photo ~ fairmountfuneralhome.com
The first time I visited Riverside I said aloud, “I could live here.” If the gorgeous and quaint office following the front entrance would find a small spot for a cot, I’d take it. Bare and flat landscape often makes me feel more expansive than high vegetative spaces. It is unfortunate that the once fruitful landscape of Riveride was slowly destroyed after loss of the treaty however, I must say that I do love and admire the mangled, dead trees that seem to writhe with deep history and close kept tales. There is a body of water on the property and if one finds themselves able to explore, they can find where old empty banks once thrived. On one of our many visits, a dear friend and I had an absolute serene and unreal experience with a pelican that appeared out of thin air at the edge of the calm water. I find that the mausoleums at Riverside hold a unique kind of energy, as the cemetery itself really does. I’ve been there plenty of times but only on certain occasions - when I am in deep struggle, sorrow, or depression. I haven’t quite figured out why this specific yard calls to me during these times but I’ve decided not to question it too much. My words about Riverside are scarce, just like the ground under my feet walking those paths, not because it is bare of history, beauty, or its own fruitfulness, but because it is a place that gives me pause. I don’t have to think too much here, I can just exist and admire the graves of those who have come and gone before me in stillness and in quiet. Riverside was one of the first cemeteries where I started to connect the dots about my path. It was subtle but there nonetheless, intertwined with the other realizations and “coincidences” coming through. It felt as if when I walked through the gate I had broke an invisible thread to alert the greater unknown that I had finally crossed a threshold, I had finally set off the buzzer. It could be that is why it calls to me in some of my deeper states of existence, as it is a place of openness and deeper knowing - a container to hold and support exploration of oneself and their possibilities in greater meaning and contribution to this plane and beyond. I can only hope that someone else walks or drives through those gates and feels something like a coming home. As blessed as it can be.
Stay connected:
friendsofriversidecemetery.org/
fairmountfuneralhome.com
Till next time.
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// 5201 Brighton Blvd, Denver, CO 80216 //