Graveyards reveal unique history

By Peter Passi ppassi@duluthnews.com

The Northland is home to a number of well-kept and stately cemeteries. But it’s also dotted with neglected and often forgotten graveyards that nevertheless harbor a treasure trove of knowledge for people interested in the region’s history, as well as for those who perhaps wish to trace their own family trees.

Throughout the years, efforts have been launched to reclaim and document many of the Northland’s lesser-known cemeteries. Lynn Reynolds has done extensive research on the subject, and in 1999 published her work, documenting more than 100 graveyards, in a collection called “A History in Stones: The Cemeteries of St. Louis County.”

The Twin Ports Genealogical Society also has been an active force, with its members working tirelessly to protect and restore sometimes-overgrown grave markers.

One place where the group has brought its resources to bear is the Scandia Cemetery, located next door to Glensheen Mansion, sandwiched between London Road and the shore of Lake Superior.

A common misconception is that the graveyard served as a repository for deceased members of the affluent Congdon family who called Glensheen home. But that is not the case, as it predates the construction of the Congdon estate.

In a diary, which is now part of the historic mansion’s archives, Clara Congdon is said to have written: “I will have quiet neighbors,” referring to the neighboring graveyard.

The Scandia Cemetery is one of the oldest in Duluth, dating back to 1881, when it was started by members of the First Norwegian Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church, a house of worship long gone from the local scene.

Society members have worked to clear Scandia’s grave markers, rediscovering many that were completely overgrown.

Lakeshore erosion has proven a challenge, as well, with several gravestones perched mere feet from the water’s edge. News Tribune freelance writer

Kathleen Murphy reported in 2019 that some members of the genealogical society even were said to have heard of caskets found floating in Lake Superior following a particularly powerful storm in the 1970s, although she noted they were unable to verify the accuracy of those accounts.

Another often overlooked area graveyard is the Greenwood Pauper Cemetery off Rice Lake Road next to what had been the Cook Home, a work farm for the poor. It serves as the final resting place for nearly 5,000 destitute individuals who died between 1895 and 1947. The numbered graves were intended to serve as a guide to whom was buried where.

But poor record-keeping led to confusion, causing county and historic society members to

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In 2012, the St. Louis County Board officially declared the Greenwood Pauper Cemetery “inactive and historical,” taking steps to ensure it will remain undisturbed in the future, with county crews continuing to mow the grounds in an effort to hold back encroaching brush and trees.

Still another cemetery located well off the beaten path was documented by Lynn Reynolds in her research: the Roussain Graveyard near Fond du Lac, near the edge of Jay Cooke State Park. The cemetery draws its name from Francis Roussain, who purchased the land and surrounding property while employed by the American Fur Co. in the early- to mid-1800s, according to the late John Fritzen, a local historian.

Fritzen reported that Roussain offered up land for the cemetery, when the Lake Superior & Mississippi Railroad came to Duluth. The new line apparently ran through two pre-existing cemeteries, and Roussain agreed that any affected graves could be relocated to a fenced-in area on his land.