Chelan County, Wenatchee, WA 98801 USA T22N, R20E SEC 16
The cemetery was at one time located at T22N, R20E, and SEC 16. THERE IS A NOTE ON THE FILE SAYING THAT THE GRAVES HAVE BEEN MOVED TO WENATCHEE CITY CEMETERY BECAUSE OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF A HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ON THE SITE. Last update 6 April 2008, by Fred Pflugrath. Note: there are no records for these men in the Wenatchee City Cemetery under their surnames or Unknown.
The cemetery, located at the West end of Crawford Street near to Saddle Mountain in Wenatchee, was first owned by the Great Northern Railroad. In 1892 when the railroad bridge east of Dryden was being built, it fell into the Wenatchee River. It was at this time the Great Northern Railroad plotted and developed the Meyer Cemetery. It is believed that since this was the only cemetery in Wenatchee for some time, the cemetery was also used by the community. There are obits pre-1900 that say “burial in local cemetery”. The men listed below are the only ones that there is proof of burial in the Meyer Cemetery from issues of the Cashmere Valley Record. There was a coroner’s inquest here in Chelan County dealing with the railroad accident. Those records have not been found in either the Chelan County Auditor’s Office, The Chelan County Coroner’s Office or the state archives in Ellensburg.
Cashmere Valley Record, 15 Dec 1927, “Nine Men Killed in Accident 35 Years Ago When Railroad Was Built Through Cashmere”. The article references a case brought before Justice of the Peace, O. C. McManus, back in 1892 and an inquest conducted to investigate the death of nine men who were killed in a railroad accident on Pine Flats at the second railroad crossing over the Wenatchee River. The men killed were employed in the construction of the Great Northern through the valley. The accident was caused by the “breaking down and giving way of the railroad bridge at said crossing. The deaths did occur through the improper construction of said bridge.” The men were all members of a construction gang.
Cashmere Valley Record, 26 Jan 1928, Report of controversy regarding the burial place in a railroad accident. Mrs. Frank Reeves stated that the burial place is at the mouth of Canyon #2 just out of Wenatchee and that there are still two markers seen there, that of Mr. Johnson and a Mr. Lindwell.
