Cemetery recorded by Von Mings Stachon (vonstac@comcast.net) and Stuart L. Whannel

(during July 2004)

Land Purchases to accommodate the cemetery:

May 03, 1879 Purchased from Peki and May Nungesser . . .. Old Ground (OG)

May 17, 1889 Purchased from Henry & Jane Smith . . . . . .. New Ground (NG)

May 26, 1889. Purchased from William & May Wirth . . . . . Wirth Addition (WA)

May 06, 1911. Purchased from William & May Wirth .. . . .. Wirth Addition (WA)

May 20, 1914 Purchased from William & May Wirth . . . . . Wirth Addition (WA)

May 03, 1948. Purchased from Frank & Emilie Novotny. . . . .North Addition (NA)

In year 1986.. .Purch. possible by Bess Kern Estate . . . . . . . Elliott Addn. (EA)

This is a very old cemetery. There are more than 330 people resting here who were born before 1840. The most notable occupant is James Wilson, better known as Tama Jim who served as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture under the McKinley, Roosevelt & Taft administrations.

Also notable are the Bunker boys who were hanged in 1860 as horse thieves. Their graves were not found when recording the cemetery but supposedly are located a short distance from Tama Jim in the Old Ground.

In 1879 a plot could be acquired for the sum of $5.00 (consisting of 12 spaces) In 1889 it was necessary to raise the fee to range from $10 to $25. By 1904 the cost of a 20x20 lot was $30 and a 10x18 $15 (fractions in proportion). One space in a lot today can cost as much as $200 (or $400 with perpetual care).

In 1884 the Cemetery Association ruled that trees are to grow to no more than 3' 6" in height. There is one big tree in the center that obviously was unaware of this ruling.

In 1885 the Association felt that a fence should be built and a hitching post should be erected in front of the cemetery and that no carriage shall enter the cemetery with the exception of the hearse carriage.

In 1889: For more efficient use of the cemetery, the Board decided to move bodies from lots that were Unknown to the SE corner of the new cemetery. Thirty-six graves were moved and Bert Ready was hired to move them for $1 each.

1943 regulation: the Sexton of Buckingham Cemetery hereafter shall make the same charge for digging graves whether summer or winter, based on the size of the vault. Winter being defined as December 15 to April 1. Previously there was an additional charge of $1 for winter due to the frozen ground.

July 1950: The Rules & Regulations of most cemeteries was: Father to be buried to the right of the wife and children on either side of the parents. In some cases, the first wife was buried to the left and the second wife to the right of husband. Also it was customary to bury facing East or the head to the West.

There are approximately 4,475 graves here (approx.60 of these are unknown and without markers and about another 70 that 'surname burials'; such as Smith burial but with no dates or markers). Records were compiled by walking the cemetery and recording data from markers as well as burial records held by the Buckingham Cemetery Association. The cemetery is still accepting burials. It is attractive and well-maintained and sits on a small hill at the edge of town with a panoramic view of the corn fields and bean fields below.