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Mountain View Cemetery Open House

Comments 4 by Rebecca Bollwitt

I know this must seem a bit grim, but Vancouver’s Mountain View Cemetery is hosting an open house Saturday July 11th and they would like you to come and spend an afternoon with them on the scenic grounds.


Photo credit: Hayley Bouchard on Flickr

I’m certain Mountain View is the final resting place of many loved ones in Vancouver as it has been around since 1887. What makes this story interesting to me as well is some of the people of note who have been laid to rest there. This includes…

  • Former mayor W.H. Malkin (as in the Malkin Bowl etc.)
  • Joe Fortes (lifeguard, hero, the Citizen of the Century)
  • Harry Winston Jerome (track and field star and one time 100-meter record holder)
  • Herbert Oliver Lee (builder of the Lee Building on Broadway)
  • Gustav Adolph Roedde (as in Roedde House)
  • and Thomas Ellis Ladner (founder of Ladner)

    • You won’t find John “Gassy Jack” Deighton there though as he’s over in New Westminster’s Fraser Cemetery along with the likes of Raymond Burr, and Arthur McBride.

    Mountain View is Vancouver’s only cemetery and they would like this open house to serve as a new introduction to this meaningful place. The event will feature tours including visits to their new water features, joss paper demonstrations, and visitors are encouraged to have a picnic near the fountain. Organizers are hoping that a visit to Mountain View with the family could become a new summer tradition for many.

    I’ve only passed through during a Haunted Vancouver trolley tour but I’d be really curious to pay a visit during the day to check out all of Mountain View’s history. It may seem like an odd place to spend a Saturday afternoon but it sure is a unique way to connect with your city’s past. Mountain View also hosts “A Night for All Souls” in the fall.

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    4 Comments  —  Comments Are Closed

    1. Urban DwellerWednesday, June 24th, 2009 — 10:40am PDT

      I used to live by there as a youth. Went to J.O. across the streets. Back in the 90’s the X-files would always be filming there. I even got a photo with sci-fi hottie of the time Gilian Anderson.

      Thanks for passing along this info. I’ve haven’t been there since the Haunted Trolley Tour as well, but pass by there all the time on my way to my parents house.

    2. HezThursday, June 25th, 2009 — 12:48pm PDT

      I live right near there! I just might have to go to this.

    3. MotSunday, July 5th, 2009 — 9:11am PDT

      Heard some flake artist talking about this on CBC radio this morning…I find this not only morbid but invasive to families who have loved ones buried at Mountainview…don’t you people have anything better to do with your time, like maybe a session with a local psychiatrist. Geez!!!

    4. paulaTuesday, May 25th, 2010 — 11:15am PDT

      Actually, Mot, many people find it quite comforting and meaningful to have a place and time to remember their dead, and that’s what cemeteries are for.
      (I am that flake artist)

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