How Did Historic Fairview Cemetery Get Established?

In November 1881, Elias Stover wrote a letter that was printed in the Albuquerque Morning Journal, informing the Board of Trade Association that individuals were burying their friends along the side of a sand hill, which was never intended to be a cemetery.  Historic Fairview Cemetery was founded as Albuquerque’s first all-inclusive cemetery at a time when a well-designed cemetery was a sign of a real city.  Unlike many earlier cemeteries, Historic Fairview was located on the east mesa where there was no chance of spring flooding.  The earliest known burial was a young boy from Corrales in 1881, five years before the cemetery was officially founded.  It was an ideal location for a cemetery because of the soft soil and the close proximity to “New Town.”   Albuquerque was a city of many neighborhoods and communities.  Some were served by local churches, but there was no non-denominational integrated cemetery until Historic Fairview.  There are various sections throughout the cemetery for various fraternal organizations, the military, family plots, as well as a section for babies and stillborn, and for certain ethnic groups that wanted to be buried together.  Now Historic Fairview Cemetery is owned and managed by a non-profit, all-volunteer organization.

Historic Landmark Designation

The City of Albuquerque approved the cemetery as a historic city landmark on October 21, 2024. With that, there are strict design guidelines that the cemetery must follow. The cemetery features diverse grave markers and monuments reflecting funerary practices from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The guidelines emphasize preservation of significant features, including various types of grave markers (tablet-style, obelisk-style, flat markers, slant markers, ledger stones) and symbols from fraternal organizations.

Key Findings and Guidelines

The Design Standards align with the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO) criteria, ensuring consistency with the cemetery’s historic designation and the U.S. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

Preservation guidelines include:
Limited cleaning methods using soft-bristle brushes and non-ionic detergents.
Repairs must match original materials and designs.
Replacement markers should replicate original forms and details.
The original entry gate, pillars, and boundary walls must be preserved, with repairs matching original specifications.
The cemetery’s circulation patterns, including dirt roads and footpaths, should maintain historic widths and alignments.

You can learn more about Historic Fairview Cemetery in this New Mexico magazine article:  A Visit to the Oldest Public Cemetery in Albuquerque, by clicking here.