Murphys Cemetery District

Buena Vista Cemetery is located at 186 Cemetery Lane, located off Jones Street next to the Murphys Historic School, in Murphys, CA 95247 and has grave sites dating back to the early years of the Gold Rush era with the earliest known burial there in June of 1855. The older sections of the cemetery have large ornate monuments adorning many of the graves. There are also simple concrete slabs and wood markers.

Mission Statement

On behalf of the citizens of the Murphys Cemetery District, the cemetery trustees strive to maintain Buena Vista Cemetery in a well maintained, aesthetically pleasing manner while maintaining the historical aspects of the cemetery. The cemetery is administered under the guidance of the Murphys Cemetery District Board of Trustees and according to the policies and ordinances of the county and state. The goal is to maintain the cemetery, keep its neat appearance and keep it a source of community pride.

• The cemetery will be safe, accessible and well maintained within the constraints of the historical setting.
• The cemetery will provide a peaceful and visually pleasing atmosphere conducive to meditation and reflection.
• The cemetery will be adequately funded to meet the needs of the citizens, on-going maintenance and future development.
• The cemetery will be operated under the guidance of the Murphys Cemetery District Trustees according to all ordinances and state statutes.
• The Cemetery Trustees will be responsible for public education regarding cemetery policies and procedures.

The Cemetery District has burial permits dating back to the late nineteen sixties and is compiling a data base of all known and new burials in the cemetery. This data base lists the place of burial within the cemetery and records name, age and date of burial. A map of the cemetery has been prepared which will help locate grave sites.

Burials from earlier years are identified by various methods: old newspaper obituaries, mortuary records, information on grave markers and other historical records. The data base of earlier burials will have all available information listed although some information may be missing. There are fragmentary unofficial records for the years starting in 1855, reconstructed from a variety of primary sources, including grave markers inscriptions, newspapers, funeral home archives, death certificates, church parish registers and oral history.

If there is no record of burial for your ancestor, they may in fact by buried in the cemetery and we don't know about it. Old burials were often not marked or wood markers were used and have vanished over time. Information is always being collected about burials in Buena Vista Cemetery from descendants, genealogists and researchers. If you can help improve our records in any way, please contact the cemetery district by email or by phone at (209) 728-2387. Even the smallest, most seemingly insignificant details can be invaluable "pieces of the puzzle".

On March 9, 2013, Buena Vista Cemetery was dedicated, by the NSGW and NDGW, to the Pioneers of the past and to the history of the future. A large plaque was installed on one of the stone pillars at the entry to the historic cemetery and ceromonies were conducted by both the Native Sons of the Golden West and the
​Native Daughters of the Golden West.

Often the cemetery trustees recieve requests to perform genealogical searches for family members. An attempt will be made to provide as much information as possible to the person making the request but our records will be limited for this type of research. Research on burials in Buena Vista Cemetery, as well as other cemeteries in Calaveras County, can be requested by going online to calaverasgenealogy.com and filling out a request form on that site. They will be able to help by checking the vital statistic indexes but, if you are looking for more than that, you can contact the Calaveras County Archivist at calaverasarchives@att.net with your research request. The archives has tax assements, deeds, historic newspapers, probates and court records plus much more. There is a fee for the county archivist to do research.

On March 9, 2013, Buena Vista Cemetery was dedicated, by the NSGW and NDGW, to the Pioneers of the past and to the history of the future. A large plaque was installed on one of the stone pillars at the entry to the historic cemetery and ceromonies were conducted by both the Native Sons of the Golden West and the
​Native Daughters of the Golden West.