Enid Cemetery and Calvary Catholic Cemetery
Encyclopedia
The Enid Cemetery and Calvary Catholic Cemetery is a cemetery in Enid, Oklahoma
that has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places
since 1996. Opened in the 1890s, the two cemeteries were designed in the rural cemetery
style. Only a portion of the Enid Cemetery contributes to the historical significance: the Original (1898), First (1918), Second (1920), and Evergreen (1923) additions. Together with the Calvary Catholic Cemetery, this area encompasses a 967 by 1318 feet (401.7 m) historical section.
The Enid Cemetery contains a white Georgia marble Art Deco, Neo-Classical Revival styled mausoleum
built in 1921 by the Economy Mausoleum Company, a red brick Mission Revival style tool shed from 1927, and an Art Deco gate, reading Enid Cemetery 1897.
At least 430 original homesteaders from the Land Run of 1893
are buried here, including:
, and had a separate entrance to the cemetery. The plots in this section were the least expensive, and many of the graves are unmarked. Local legend holds that Boston Corbett
, who shot the assassin John Wilkes Booth
is buried in one of these unmarked graves. Corbett was known to have peddled medicine in Enid for W.W. Garrit and Company of Topeka. More famous to the Enid area, is a corpse that never received a burial—that of David E. George, a drifter, who claimed to be Booth himself, and committed suicide in Enid's Grand Hotel in 1903. His body, ultimately claimed by his lawyer, Finis L. Bates
, went on a nationwide tour for over 50 years before ultimately disappearing.
The Jewish section of the Enid Cemetery contains the graves of many early Enid merchants, including Herbert L. Kaufman, Milton Newman, Marinus Marcus Godschalk, and Abraham Herzberg, all of whom owned businesses in Enid's downtown. Herbert Kaufman's house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and he operated Kaufman's Style Shop. Marinus Godschalk founded Enid's first clothing store with Joseph Meiberg called Meiberg and Godschalk. Milton Newman ran Enid's branch of Newman Mercantile
. Abraham Herzberg founded Herzberg's Department Store and his house is a contributing property to the Waverley Historic District
.
In the American Legion section, veterans from the Spanish-American War
, the American Civil War
, World War I, and World War II
are laid to rest, often with bronze insignias representing the battles in which they fought. The Irvin McDowell Circle of the Grand Army of the Republic built a Civil War Memorial in 1917 and the United Commercial Travelers built a World War I
Memorial in 1920. Grave markers also include insignias representing membership in the Masons, International Order of the Odd Fellows, the Woodmen of America, and the Grand Army of the Republic.
The 1921 Neo-Classical Revival and Art Deco style white marble Mausoleum, the 1927 red-brown brick Mission Revival style tool shed, 1917 Red brick office building, 1914 Gazebo, 1929 Art Deco gate, and the Elm and cedar trees planted in 1923 are contributing objects. Several contributing objects are memorials to military service such as the American Legion plot with forty-eight graves of veterans, Union Veterans section of fourteen graves, World War I memorial to Garfield County veterans who died in service, and 1917 Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic Civil War monument to the unknown soldier. The Kennedy Mausoleum and open-air altar in the Calvary Catholic Cemetery.
Several grave markers also contribute to the historic significance of the cemetery: William F. Svarik (1909) in the Catholic cemetery, W.C. Conley (1889-1921) in Potter's Field, William Mason (1909-1936) and M.J. Adler (1867-1919) in the Jewish section, Lt. Commander Robert L. Strickler, Martha J Camden (1852-1926), Aviation Cadet John Willard Nivison (1922-1943), Allen B. Crandall, Opal Young (1899-1903), Lee Stuart Anderson (1896-1897), Frank James T. Douthitt (1904-1923), and the Mill family in the Enid Cemetery.
Enid, Oklahoma
Enid is a city in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. In 2010, the population was 49,379, making it the ninth largest city in Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a...
that has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
since 1996. Opened in the 1890s, the two cemeteries were designed in the rural cemetery
Rural cemetery
The rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of burial ground that uses landscaping in a park-like setting.As early as 1711 the architect Sir Christopher Wren had advocated the creation of burial grounds on the outskirts of town, "inclosed with a strong Brick Wall, and having a walk round, and...
style. Only a portion of the Enid Cemetery contributes to the historical significance: the Original (1898), First (1918), Second (1920), and Evergreen (1923) additions. Together with the Calvary Catholic Cemetery, this area encompasses a 967 by 1318 feet (401.7 m) historical section.
History
Enid's earliest graves were located on the Hymen and Cora Anderson farm land, following the death of their one year old son Lee Stuart in 1897. Lee Stuart's grave was joined by those of an elderly man, Peter J. Bradley, and a young black child named Johnson a few weeks later. Anderson deeded 15 acres (60,702.9 m²) of his land to the city in 1898 for use as a cemetery. In April 1898, a 10.5 acres (42,492 m²) section of the Anderson land was deeded to Enid's St. Francis Xavier congregation led by Bishop Theophile Meerschaert. In 1913, the Enid Cemetery Association bought 10 more acres from Zachary Taylor which would become the First and Second Additions. In 1929, the Enid Cemetery Association expanded the Calvary land by 2 additional acres. The Calvary Catholic Cemetery contains a mausoleum built in 1904 for Ruth Sara Kennedy from white marble in the Neo-Classical Revival style.The Enid Cemetery contains a white Georgia marble Art Deco, Neo-Classical Revival styled mausoleum
Mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
built in 1921 by the Economy Mausoleum Company, a red brick Mission Revival style tool shed from 1927, and an Art Deco gate, reading Enid Cemetery 1897.
At least 430 original homesteaders from the Land Run of 1893
Land Run of 1893
The Land Run of 1893, also known as the Cherokee Strip Land Run, marked the opening of the Cherokee Outlet to the public. The run happened on September 16, 1893 at noon with more than 100,000 participants hoping to claim land. The land offices for the run were set up in Perry, Enid, Woodward, and...
are buried here, including:
- Mary Giles, a clerk at the Enid land office.
- James T. Douthitt, an original homesteader, who was shot by his wife, Dollie in 1904. Later, Dollie Douthitt also wounded several people during a courthouseGarfield County Courthouse (Enid, Oklahoma)The Garfield County Courthouse is a historic courthouse building located in Enid, Oklahoma. It is on the National Register of Historic Places both individually and as a part of the Enid Downtown Historic District.-Previous Courthouses :...
shooting-spree. - Fredrick and Susan Dresser, original homesteaders who lived inside a dug out creek bank, unable to afford construction of a house.
Sections
Black people were interred in Potter's Field during segregationRacial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
, and had a separate entrance to the cemetery. The plots in this section were the least expensive, and many of the graves are unmarked. Local legend holds that Boston Corbett
Boston Corbett
Thomas P. "Boston" Corbett was the Union Army soldier who shot and killed Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth. He disappeared after 1888, but circumstantial evidence suggests that he died in the Great Hinckley Fire in 1894, although this remains impossible to substantiate.-Early...
, who shot the assassin John Wilkes Booth
John Wilkes Booth
John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
is buried in one of these unmarked graves. Corbett was known to have peddled medicine in Enid for W.W. Garrit and Company of Topeka. More famous to the Enid area, is a corpse that never received a burial—that of David E. George, a drifter, who claimed to be Booth himself, and committed suicide in Enid's Grand Hotel in 1903. His body, ultimately claimed by his lawyer, Finis L. Bates
Finis L. Bates
Finis Langdon Bates was a Memphis, Tennessee, lawyer and author of The Escape and Suicide of John Wilkes Booth . In this 309-page book, Bates claimed that John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, not only was not mortally wounded by Union Army Sergeant Thomas P...
, went on a nationwide tour for over 50 years before ultimately disappearing.
The Jewish section of the Enid Cemetery contains the graves of many early Enid merchants, including Herbert L. Kaufman, Milton Newman, Marinus Marcus Godschalk, and Abraham Herzberg, all of whom owned businesses in Enid's downtown. Herbert Kaufman's house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and he operated Kaufman's Style Shop. Marinus Godschalk founded Enid's first clothing store with Joseph Meiberg called Meiberg and Godschalk. Milton Newman ran Enid's branch of Newman Mercantile
Newman Brothers Building
The Newman Brothers Building is a former commercial building in Joplin, Missouri. In 1990, the building was entered into the National Register of Historic Places. After going through several owners, the building is now occupied by Joplin city offices....
. Abraham Herzberg founded Herzberg's Department Store and his house is a contributing property to the Waverley Historic District
Waverley Historic District (Enid, Oklahoma)
The Waverley Historic District is located in Enid, Oklahoma, and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2006. It consists of four Waverley additions. The William and Luther Braden farm was the first parcel of land to be platted by the Waverley Development Company in May...
.
In the American Legion section, veterans from the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
, the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, World War I, and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
are laid to rest, often with bronze insignias representing the battles in which they fought. The Irvin McDowell Circle of the Grand Army of the Republic built a Civil War Memorial in 1917 and the United Commercial Travelers built a World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Memorial in 1920. Grave markers also include insignias representing membership in the Masons, International Order of the Odd Fellows, the Woodmen of America, and the Grand Army of the Republic.
Contributing historical objects
Potter's Field, the Jewish section, and the Champlin family plot are all contributing sections of the cemetery.The 1921 Neo-Classical Revival and Art Deco style white marble Mausoleum, the 1927 red-brown brick Mission Revival style tool shed, 1917 Red brick office building, 1914 Gazebo, 1929 Art Deco gate, and the Elm and cedar trees planted in 1923 are contributing objects. Several contributing objects are memorials to military service such as the American Legion plot with forty-eight graves of veterans, Union Veterans section of fourteen graves, World War I memorial to Garfield County veterans who died in service, and 1917 Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic Civil War monument to the unknown soldier. The Kennedy Mausoleum and open-air altar in the Calvary Catholic Cemetery.
Several grave markers also contribute to the historic significance of the cemetery: William F. Svarik (1909) in the Catholic cemetery, W.C. Conley (1889-1921) in Potter's Field, William Mason (1909-1936) and M.J. Adler (1867-1919) in the Jewish section, Lt. Commander Robert L. Strickler, Martha J Camden (1852-1926), Aviation Cadet John Willard Nivison (1922-1943), Allen B. Crandall, Opal Young (1899-1903), Lee Stuart Anderson (1896-1897), Frank James T. Douthitt (1904-1923), and the Mill family in the Enid Cemetery.
Notable graves
Notable among those interred are:- H.H. ChamplinH. H. Champlin HouseThe H.H. Champlin House is a two-and-one half-story sandstone building designed in the Tudor Revival style. The house, completed in 1939, is located at 612 S. Tyler in Enid, Oklahoma. It is located within the Kisner Heights addition to the city of Enid, developed from farmland formerly owned by...
, founder of Champlin Refinery and the First National Bank of Enid. - W.O. Cromwell, Attorney General of Oklahoma Territory and advisor to Governor William H. MurrayWilliam H. MurrayWilliam Henry Davis "Alfalfa Bill" Murray was an American teacher, lawyer, and politician who became active in Oklahoma before statehood as legal adviser to Governor Douglas H. Johnston of the Chickasaw Nation...
- The Frantz Brothers, local businessmen who helped establish the Denver, Enid and Gulf RailroadDenver, Enid and Gulf RailroadThe Denver, Enid and Gulf Railroad was built as a short line railroad operating in Kansas, and Oklahoma. Incorporated in Oklahoma as the Denver, Enid and Gulf Railroad Company, March 31, 1902, by the five Frantz Brothers....
. - Houstin James, father of author Marquis JamesMarquis JamesMarquis James was an American journalist and author, twice awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his works The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston and The Life of Andrew Jackson....
. - Fred C. Gensman, founder of Gensman Hardware Store, a downtown staple on the square for almost eighty years, President of the Enid Cemetery Association.
- Jack H. Pellow, stonecutter who worked on Grant's tombGrant's TombGeneral Grant National Memorial , better known as Grant's Tomb, is a mausoleum containing the bodies of Ulysses S. Grant , American Civil War General and 18th President of the United States, and his wife, Julia Dent Grant...
, founder of Pellow Monument Works in 1911 which provides headstones for local burials. - James Yancy CallahanJames Yancy CallahanJames Yancy Callahan was a late 19th century politician. Callahan would represent the Oklahoma Territory as a Delegate to the United States House of Representatives from 1887 to 1899...
, Oklahoma Territorial Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives - Robert M. BlairRobert M. BlairRobert M. Blair was a sailor in the U.S. Navy during the American Civil War. He received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Second Battle of Fort Fisher on January 15, 1865.-Military service:...
, Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient