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The land for Lakeview Cemetery was granted to the Town of Shoshoni by the United States by Patent #63491 dated May 20, 1909. The legal land description is: NE 1/4 of the NE 1/4 of Section 29, Township 38 North, Range 94 West of the 6th Principal Meridian, Wyoming, containing 40 acres.
The Lakeview Cemetery has a rich history. Many of Shoshoni's first citizens are laid to rest there, beginning with the burial of the infant, Anna Sara Heyer in October of 1906. While walking among the headstones, one reads of many of the famous names that helped to chisel the town of Shoshoni into the prairie soil: Heyer, Shawver, Jewell, Crabb, Gudmundsen, Smart, Herbst, Fuller, Linn and Kaiser to name a few. There are other people buried at Lakeview that probably helped to contribute to the town's history, but have no permanent headstones. There are over 90 wooden markers that have been placed at gravesites within the cemetery, but they are no longer legible due to deterioration. Records kept at the Town Hall detail the names and dates of some of these people. This is a different way to look at the local history, but interesting none the less.
The most well-known citizen of Shoshoni has to be pioneer doctor and surgeon, Dr. E. L. Jewell, who was born in 1875 and passed away in 1949 at the age of 74.
After looking through the records kept at the Town Hall, one sees that there were many illnesses, diseases and accidents that claimed lives. A case of Typhoid was noted in 1922 that took the life of a three year old, in 1935 Cholera claimed a one year old. Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever was also noted as the cause of death for two individuals, one in 1927 and again in 1929. Another death was caused by carbolic acid poisoning for a 28 year old female in 1924. Still to remind us of the unsettled west, several gun shot victims "met their maker" throughout the era. One of the most unusual is the case where the body of a 64 year old man was found along the river in August of 1929. The coroner surmised that he had been shot and killed in December of 1926, some thirty-two months earlier.
There are several veterans buried at the Lakeview Cemetery. Two are noted as serving with the calvary. Earl Gust, Wyoming, Sgt., 8 Cav., died November 17, 1940. There is no date of birth listed for him. The other veteran is Charles F. Smith, Co. A, NY Cav., born in 1846 and died in 1917.
Town records make mention of an older cemetery just west of Shoshoni. There is one grave marker there: Clarence Tracy, 1903 - 1906. Notes say that he was the young child of William and Louise Tracy, and was believed to be the first child to have died in early day Shoshoni. There are other grave-sites, but no markers to indicate who or when. Old town records show that there could be another young child buried at this location.
The Shoshoni cemetery committee was formed in the fall of 1993 with the encouragement of town councilman Pat Collins. The ten Lysite-Shoshoni area volunteers who make up the committee are dedicated to seeing that the Shoshoni Cemetery be cleaned up and kept looking nice. The committee with the help of other community volunteers have started to clean up the cemetery and are planning on many improvements, including grass planted throughout the cemetery, an automatic sprinkler system, a chain-linked fence surrounding the border, more trees and graveled driveways. A padlocked gate at the entrance has become necessary due to vandalism.
NUT