Riverside Cemetery

Story

Riverside Cemetery, established in 1876, is Denver, Colorado's oldest operating cemetery. More than 67,000 people are buried there, including 1,000 veterans.Location and operationRiverside Cemetery occupies a 77acre site between Brighton Boulevard and the east bank of the South Platte River, approximately 4 miles down stream from downtown Denver, Colorado. The majority of Riverside Cemetery lies within Adams County, Colorado, however the rest of the cemetery, the cemetery's entrance and administration building, are within the City and County of Denver.Riverside Cemetery originally was the property of the Riverside Cemetery Association from its founding in 1876 until 1900 when the association's assets were transferred to the Fairmount Cemetery Association (presently known as Fairmount Cemetery Company). In late 2000, Fairmount Cemetery Company along with members of the community founded the Fairmount Heritage Foundation to be an educational resource for the community and to protect and preserve the heritage of both the company's properties: Riverside Cemetery and Fairmount Cemetery. The volunteers of this foundation staff the Riverside Cemetery Office on Tuesdays and Thursdays and organize events and preservation projects for the cemeteries.