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Virginia Cemetery
Located in Goose Creek Precinct south east of Valentine, NE
Section 18, Range 31, Township 25.
This cemetery is located on a rolling hillside on the east part
of the late Stephen James valley northeast of Mullen, NE.
This ranch is now owned and operated by Eugene James, a grandson of
Stephen.
On January 3,1923, a county surveyor, A.J.Antwerp of Broken Bow, Ne.,
surveyed and made plate and a blueprint for a tract 250' by 166'.
A.G. Humphrey issued the deed.
On April 9,1925, Articles of Incorporation were drawn for the Cemetery
Association. Members who signed the Articles were:
Virginia James, Loy R. James, Pearl James, Fielden S. Boyer, Mary E.
Boyer, C.N. Boyer, Cora Boyer, Fay B. James. By 1976 all were deceased
except Loy and Pearl James.
At this meeting, Virginia Boyer James donated a parcel of land on the
northwest quarter of Section 18, Township 25 which ws to consist of not
more than two acres for cemetery purposes.
Loy James, C.N.Boyer and Fielden Boyer were elected trustees
and it was decided that annual meetings would be held in April at the
Virginia School house(District 176, Reeves Precinct). At the present time
there is no school building in the district.
Article V reads: "Members of this association shall sonsist of
the persons signing these articles, their heirs or assignees."
The cemetery was so named because most of the residents of the commuity
had originally come from Grayson County, Virginia.
In a letter to C. N. Boyer, the sureyor stated that he thought an
appropriate name for the cemetery would be "Blizzard Cemetery", as it
was the first he had attempted to plat during a blizzard. It has also
been suggested to name it "Tragic Cemetery", because many of the burials
were the result of a tragedy. James Murray and his pregnant wife, Lee,
were killed in a tornado which struck a few miles east of the cemetery on
September 28, 1923. The next morning, Lester Parsons rode to the top of
a hill and found the buildings demolished and the bodies lying in a
field. Lee was still alive, but died shortly afterward while the two
little boys, still alive were huddled by their mother's side. These
may have been the only deaths in Cherry County caused by a tornado.
Another tragedy occured in December 1923 when Bill Smith, a good
neighbor in the west end of the valley was murdered at his home.
His wife, Lottie and a hired man, Clinton Smith,(no relation) were
found guilty and served time in the State Pennitentiary.
Vera James, a sweet young school teacher drowned in the Loup River
north of Mullen in 1933 and was buried in the Virginia Cemetery.
One will find graves of several infants who died at birth, or in
early childhood. There are three sets of twins buried here also.
There are 60 lots, and the following person are interred in this
cemetery:
| Name | Birth | Death | Lot Number |
| Boyer, Dennis | 08-05-1842 | 02-27-1919 | lot 43 |
| Boyer, Sarah E. | 09-24-1843 | 01-08-1924 | lot 43 |
| Boyer, Veva(dau of Fielden & Eunice Boyer) | 09-09-1909 | 03-22-1910 | lot 44 |
| Bullington, Charles(son of Elmer) | ? | 1933 | lot 51 |
| Downing, twins | ? | ? | lot 51 |
| James, Stephen Lee(hus of Virginia Boyer m.07-29-1877)(son of James Yont & Elizabeth Scott James) | 09-10-1853 | 03-29-1917 | lot 43 | Grayson county, VA |
| James, Vera(dau of Fay & Sallie James) | 03-11-1908 | 05-29-1933 | lot 56 |
| James, Virginia Boyer | 03-17-1847 | 04-04-1926 | lot 43 |
| Little, Carl Berson | 04-25-1889 | 03-24-1929 | lot 47 |
| Little, Claude E.(son of Carl) | 10-09-1922 | 04-01-1975 | lot 47 |
| Little, Tennie Lee Ulrich(wife of Carl) | 03-01-1895 | 04-01-1975 | lot 47 |
| Miller, Eliza Pearman | 12-15-1880 | 02-02-1923 | lot 52 |
| Miller, Zenna(dau of Ernest & HazelPearman) | 07-13-1921 | 09-16-1923 | lot 52 |
| Mink, Glen Eugene(son of Clarence & Bessie) | ? | 09-19-1940 | lot 44 |
| Mink, Donald Dwayne | ? | 05-19-1938 | lot 44 |
| Murray, Baby infant(tornado) | 1923 | 1923 | lot 45 |
| Murray, Billy(son of Rose & Ross) | 1922 | 1923 | Lot 45 |
| Murray, James(tornado) | 1885 | 1923 | lot 45 |
| Murray, Lee(wife of James)(tornado) | 1895 | 1823 | lot 45 |
| Murray, Neil(son of Charles & Winnie Murray) | 11-23-1917 | 06-14-1919 | lot 45 |
| Murray, Rosalie(dau of Rose & Ross Murray) | 1917 | 1920 | Lot 45 |
| Murray, Twins(of Rose & Ross) | 1913 | 1913 | lot 45 |
| Smith, Infant | ? | ? | lot 46 |
| Smith, Infant | ? | ? | lot 46 |
| Smith, W.F.(Bill) (murdered) | ? | 12-20-1923 | Lot 46 |
| Weber, Bonnie June(dau of Elva(James) & Erwin Webber) | ? | 06-30-1935 | lot 57 |
| Weber, Vonnie Jean(dau of Elva(James) & Erwin Webber) | ? | 06-30-1935 | lot 57 |
Information gathered and written by Gussie Boyer Osborne in 1977.
We apologize for any errors in reading or transcribing of information.
For corrections, please contact the Cherry County Coordinator.
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Cemeteries Listpage
02-2005