Description of Historic Place

The Cranbrook Old General Cemetery is an historic burial ground that consists of 6.09 acres of City owned property located between Borden Road and Cobham Avenue on the West side of the City of Cranbrook, B.C.

Heritage Value

The Old General Cemetery is recognized for its historic value as Cranbrook's first formal burial ground after the City's original survey. The heritage site includes City burials from 1899 and also includes graves moved from an earlier cemetery which was located close to present day Baker Park. The initial 5 acres on the north side were surveyed by H. P. Cummins in April 1899 and this was later expanded to its present size of 6.09 acres. Poor maintenance led to additional land being purchased by Hyde Baker in April 1900. The site includes a central open funeral chapel and areas set aside for Chinese, Anglican, infants, Legion Returned Soldier and indigent burials.

The cemetery is associated with prominent and significant individuals and many events in Cranbrook's and B.C.'s history. Graves include those of Conrad Kain, Henry Seelye, the Leitch family, early pioneers, war veterans, and several family plots. There are a total in excess of 2,200 plots within this area, many which remain unmarked. The area serves as a valuable outdoor classroom to learn about some of Cranbrook's pioneers and history.

Many gravestones are vertical with Christian symbols and religious inscriptions. They are valued for their decoration, designs and inscriptions of the stone markers and gravestones. The markers display changing tastes and values and the cemetery's development over time. The Chinese section includes gravestones with Chinese inscriptions on them. The Veteran Returned Soldiers' area has over 152 plots all marked with ground-level granite markers and an added later columbarium.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Cranbrook Old General Cemetery include its:
- Whole 6.09 acre cemetery site
- Layout of plots, roads and pathways
- Historic sections for different religious, social, and ethnic groups
- Separate sections for Returned Soldiers and Indigents
- Scattered native trees
- Carved stone, metal and wooden markers including historical memorials
- Rectilinear concrete curbing and railings of family plots and markers
- Central open-sided chapel
- Plan of named grave plots kept at the Cranbrook Engineering Department for public reference and research
- Plot Plan and plot names available for searching on the Cranbrook City website
- Grave markers that have been photographed and georeferenced.