Weston in Platte County, Missouri — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Laurel Hill Cemetery
Around 1838, the city’s founding father acquired a half-acre of land and established the City Cemetery to serve as a final resting place for the residents of Weston. By 1853, the area was becoming too crowded, and business man Theodore F. Warner donated an additional four acres. The exact date is unknown, but by the end of the 1800s, the cemetery’s name was changed to Laurel Hill Cemetery, named for the Laurel trees that grew on that hill at the time. Unfortunately, no Laurel trees remain today. The first burial in this cemetery is thought to be that of Jane Woods in 1838. She was the wife of Squire Jeremiah Woods, who served on the First Board of Trustees for Weston before it became incorporated.
Laurel Hill Cemetery serves as the final resting place for most of the original residents of Weston: the businessmen, doctors, builders, dreamers, soldiers and veterans, farmers, teachers, lawmen, and their wives and children who built the town, gave it personality and established its place in history. Here too, are buried individuals who were ordinary and who even had questionable character: some likeable, some not. Yet all of these
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Early gravestones were often in the simple shape of tablets. With time, gravestones became larger and more elaborate, with detailed inscriptions and symbolic carvings that memorialized those laid to rest beneath them. Early graves were seldom in neat rows, however most of the gravestones face east: ready to rise up and “face the new day” with every sunrise.
Laurel Hill Cemetery is unendowed and receives no financial help either from the city, county or state. Thus in past years, the Board of Directors has done a letter writing fundraiser and the citizens of Weston and families who have loved ones resting here, have always responded generously. A donation to help with the cemetery’s upkeep is welcome. The address is:
Laurel Hill Cemetery Board
19552 Shane Lane, Weston, MO 64098.
Erected 2014 by Platte County Outreach Grant Program and the Weston Community Theatre.
Location. 39° 24.864′ N, 94° 53.863′ W. Marker is in Weston, Missouri, in Platte County. Marker is on Welt Street, on the left when traveling north. Marker is just inside Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Weston MO 64098, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A different marker also named Laurel Hill Cemetery (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Laurel Hill Cemetery (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Laurel Hill Cemetery (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Laurel Hill Cemetery (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Benjamin Wood House (approx. ¼ mile away); United Methodist Church (approx. ¼ mile away); Cody House (approx. ¼ mile away); Timeline of Weston History (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Weston.
Also see . . . Laurel Hill Cemetery, Weston MO. (Submitted on September 19, 2014, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
Categories. • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Settlements & Settlers •
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Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on September 19, 2014, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 259 times since then and 10 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 19, 2014, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.