Little Turkey Cemetery

aka Utica Little Turkey Cemetery, Methodist Cemetery

This cemetery is located at 43.1305556, -92.1016667; 1563-1573 Windsor Avenue, Waucoma, IA 52171, just north of the unincorporated town of Little Turkey.

Documenting this cemetery has been a bit more complicated than others in the county. It is an old pioneer cemetery that appears to have fallen in and out of good repair over the years. The first listing of burials we have found was the WPA survey, conducted in the 1930’s. Only 11 persons were listed in the WPA survey, transcribed for this site by Sheryl McClure.

Another attempt to document this cemetery occurred in 1984, when Marge and Grant Hayes visited the cemetery. This visit occurred after a local Boy Scout troop had conducted an Eagle Scout project to clean up the site. Six names were added in this survey, transcribed by Marge and Grant.

Third, a sign was erected at the cemetery. The sources of this information are unknown, and the year of its posting is also unknown, but the hand-painted sign was in relatively good condition when it was photographed in July 2017, so it is estimated to be no more than 10 – 15 years old. The names on this sign were transcribed in 2017 by county coordinator Bruce Kuennen.

Finally, a 100% photo survey of the stones still existing (and readable) was conducted by Bruce and three of his sisters – Doris, Patty, and Julie – in July 2017. These photos have been added to the Iowa Gravestone Photo Project (IGPP) and the names added to the table below.

Several names appear on more than one survey; in this case only the first source is listed. Occasionally, information or spelling differs between sources. The coordinator used his best judgment to choose which source to follow.

It should also be noted that there has been some confusion between this cemetery and nearby St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery of Little Turkey. Tombstone photos from St. Mary’s were found on the IGPP site for Little Turkey, but they have been corrected (removed and reloaded to the correct cemetery). A complete survey of that cemetery is included here.

The resulting table below can be considered a complete data set of the burials in this cemetery, but additions and corrections from family members or others are welcome.