Volunteers Invited to Help at Monarch Cemetery Clean-Up

On May 14, starting at 9 a.m. the public is invited to volunteer to help with the Monarch Lutheran Cemetery clean-up as part of celebrating May as Historic Preservation Month. This clean-up is part of SCLT history program with a hands on activity that engages the community with a historic site as well as historic preservation.

The Monarch Lutheran Cemetery is part of the Monarch coal site area that is included on the Wyoming Historic Mine Trail – Black Diamond Trail. Monarch was the largest and longest running underground mining operation in Sheridan. The mine started in 1903 and closed in 1953. When the mine opened, it was equipped with electric power and employed 325 men.

The Town of Monarch initially had 40 houses, 4 boarding houses, company store, schoolhouse, and mine facilities. It eventually grew to a community of two churches and 1,200 residents. Despite the towns considerable size, Monarch was described as a tight knit community. Today, Interstate 90 sits between the original townsite that was near the railroad tracks and on the other side of Interstate 90 up on the hill sits the Monarch Lutheran Cemetery.

Saturday morning will consist of volunteers helping with general clean-up of the site such as weed eating and fence mending. Sheridan Community Land Trust Historic Program Manager, Carrie Edinger will be leading the volunteers in documenting the cemetery site by creating a map of the layout of the site and notating names and dates on gravestones.

This documentation of the site will be archived in the Sheridan Fulmer Library Wyoming Room for community access to information pertaining to the cemetery as well as visuals.

Sheridan Community Land Trust would like to thank Padlock Ranch for access to the site for the clean-up day, Greensky Commercial Cleaning for donating clean-up materials, and a SCLT volunteer who has helped with some preliminary weed eating to have the main section of the cemetery clear for Saturday, May 14^thdocumentation activities.

The cemetery is visible from the interstate, and the volunteers will walk together from the parking pullout to the cemetery. SCLT provide tools & cleaning materials, water, refreshments available.

To get to the cemetery: Take Acme Rd Exit 14 on I-90. Please park at northeast pullout. Do not park on any grass area. RSVP is strongly suggested for this activity. This event is funded by the Wyoming Humanities Council.

For more information go to https://sheridanclt.org/events/historic-monarch-lutheran-cemetery-cleanup/