Agenda 10/30/2024
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NOTICE OF VACANCY OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES. Anyone interested in joining our board can apply by submitting an application to the County Clerk to the Board of Supervisors. Apply here Board of Trustees
Starting July 21st, 2021 district Board Meetings will resume the regular schedule of the third (3rd) Wednesday of each month at 10 a.m. These meetings are all open to the public.
Please help support Lower Lake Cemetery with purchasing little flags for our veterans' gravesites. Sometimes we are unable to fly the big flags, and these flags would be placed instead. We really appreciate any help that can be donated to this worthy cause. Thank you.
Click on flag to order..
Click on flag to order..
In the late 1850s, the town of Lower Lake was first known to its European settlers as Grantsville. Lower Lake was founded in 1858 with the first home being built by E. Mitchell. A blacksmith shop and a post office, always called Lower Lake, were also built in 1858. In 1860, a store opened, followed by a saloon opened by C.H. Adams in 1861. In 1865, Byrum opened the first hotel in Lower Lake.
It has been reported that what is now known as the Lower Lake Cemetery District was first used in 1850, and is one of the oldest cemeteries in California. Throughout history, the cemetery has been referred to by several names; the old IOOF Cemetery, Lake View Cemetery and the Catholic Cemetery. On February 15, 1867, the Lakeport courthouse burned suspiciously and all vital records were destroyed. Although it was not required for deaths to be recorded in California until about 1905, important records perished in the fire.
A substantial portion of the records in use by the Lower Lake Cemetery District were recorded in a book titled “Lake View Cemetery Record 1867-1982.” These records were maintained by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) and the Free and Accepted Masons (F&AM). The original book is located at the Lower Lake Schoolhouse Museum, but is not on display due to the fragile condition of the book. The museum has computerized the book and graciously provided the District with a CD copy.
Unconfirmed records indicate that the earliest burial in the cemetery is John Bainbridge, who died in March of 1824. There is no headstone or marker to confirm this and Mr. Bainbridge is not listed in the IOOF burial book. However, it is known that prior to 1836 and the first recorded event in the history of what afterward became Lake County, a party of hunters, names now unknown, spent a winter in the valley near Lower Lake.
The earliest confirmed burial is that of Sophia Bower, a young girl who died on May 29, 1857. Her father was Jacob Bower, born March 31, 1821, in Bavaria, Germany. Mr. Bower came to California in April 1849, and engaged in mining until 1853. On March 9, 1855, Mr. Bower married Miss Clarinda Thomas, a native of Illinois. In 1857, Mr. and Mrs. Bower came to Napa County and settled where the Lower Lake wharf landing once stood. They remained there until the Clearlake Water Company’s Dam of 1867 and 1868. In 1867, Mr. and Mrs. Bower settled on 450 acres located in Burns Valley.
On June 14, 1939, a petition of J.W. Constable was approved and granted by the County of Lake establishing and organizing what is now known as the Lower Lake Cemetery District. The communities of Lower Lake, the City of Clearlake, Clearlake Park, Clearlake Oaks and Glenhaven encompass the District.
DONATIONS CAN BE MADE DIRECTLY TO:
Lower Lake Cemetery District,
P. O. Box 1193, Lower Lake, CA 95457
Thank you for your support.
Iris Hudson, Chair Board of Trustees
It has been reported that what is now known as the Lower Lake Cemetery District was first used in 1850, and is one of the oldest cemeteries in California. Throughout history, the cemetery has been referred to by several names; the old IOOF Cemetery, Lake View Cemetery and the Catholic Cemetery. On February 15, 1867, the Lakeport courthouse burned suspiciously and all vital records were destroyed. Although it was not required for deaths to be recorded in California until about 1905, important records perished in the fire.
A substantial portion of the records in use by the Lower Lake Cemetery District were recorded in a book titled “Lake View Cemetery Record 1867-1982.” These records were maintained by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) and the Free and Accepted Masons (F&AM). The original book is located at the Lower Lake Schoolhouse Museum, but is not on display due to the fragile condition of the book. The museum has computerized the book and graciously provided the District with a CD copy.
Unconfirmed records indicate that the earliest burial in the cemetery is John Bainbridge, who died in March of 1824. There is no headstone or marker to confirm this and Mr. Bainbridge is not listed in the IOOF burial book. However, it is known that prior to 1836 and the first recorded event in the history of what afterward became Lake County, a party of hunters, names now unknown, spent a winter in the valley near Lower Lake.
The earliest confirmed burial is that of Sophia Bower, a young girl who died on May 29, 1857. Her father was Jacob Bower, born March 31, 1821, in Bavaria, Germany. Mr. Bower came to California in April 1849, and engaged in mining until 1853. On March 9, 1855, Mr. Bower married Miss Clarinda Thomas, a native of Illinois. In 1857, Mr. and Mrs. Bower came to Napa County and settled where the Lower Lake wharf landing once stood. They remained there until the Clearlake Water Company’s Dam of 1867 and 1868. In 1867, Mr. and Mrs. Bower settled on 450 acres located in Burns Valley.
On June 14, 1939, a petition of J.W. Constable was approved and granted by the County of Lake establishing and organizing what is now known as the Lower Lake Cemetery District. The communities of Lower Lake, the City of Clearlake, Clearlake Park, Clearlake Oaks and Glenhaven encompass the District.
DONATIONS CAN BE MADE DIRECTLY TO:
Lower Lake Cemetery District,
P. O. Box 1193, Lower Lake, CA 95457
Thank you for your support.
Iris Hudson, Chair Board of Trustees