Wyuka Cemetery is the largest

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...

. In 1890, Lincoln's Bnai Jeshurun Congregation, a Reform congregation, began using a section of Wyuka.

History

Wyuka Cemetery was established in Lincoln, Nebraska, by an act of the

Nebraska Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the small ...

in 1869, which sought to provide a cemetery for the state capital city founded two years prior. The trustees rejected the first cemetery site along Salt Creek to the west of Lincoln due to flooding concerns and instead purchased 80 acres of land east of the city. Wyuka Cemetery has since expanded to over 140 acres between “O” Street and Vine Street. The iron fence surrounding the cemetery was originally erected around the

University of Nebraska-Lincoln A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

City Campus. The Board of Regents authorized the construction of the fence in 1891, and the fence enclosed the original campus until 1925 when it was removed due to safety concerns because fire engines could not pass through the width of the gates. Wyuka Cemetery was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1982 and is considered a prime example of the

rural cemetery A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-nineteenth century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries. They were typically built one to five ...

form.

Notable interments

Hazel Abel Hazel Abel (née Hempel; July 10, 1888July 30, 1966) was an American educator and politician in the U.S. state of Nebraska, who served as a member of the United States Senate for fifty-four days in 1954. She was the first woman elected to the Sena ...

(1888–1966), US Senator *

Victor Emanuel Anderson Victor Emanuel Anderson (March 30, 1902 – August 15, 1962) was an American politician from the state of Nebraska. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Nebraska Legislature, as mayor of the capital city of Lincoln, and as the 28 ...

(1902–1962), Governor of Nebraska *

Charles W. Bryan Charles Wayland Bryan (February 10, 1867 – March 4, 1945) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 20th and 23rd Governor of Nebraska, and Mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska, and was the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 1924. ...

(1867–1945), Mayor of Lincoln and Governor of Nebraska * Elmer J. Burkett (1867–1935), US Senator *

Amasa Cobb Amasa Cobb (September 27, 1823July 5, 1905) was an Americans, American politician and judge. He was the 6th and 9th Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court and the 5th Mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska. Earlier in his life, he was a United States ...

(1823–1905), US CongressmanEicher, John H., and

David J. Eicher David John Eicher (born August 7, 1961) is an American editor, writer, and popularizer of astronomy and space. He has been editor-in-chief of ''Astronomy'' magazine since 2002. He is author, coauthor, or editor of 23 books on science and American ...

, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . p. 177. * Oren Sturman Copeland (1887–1958), US Congressman * Elizabeth Hawley Everett (1857-1940), clubwoman, suffragist, author, magazine founder/editor, school principal, superindent of schools *

J. James Exon John James "Jim" Exon (August 9, 1921June 10, 2005) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 33rd Governor of Nebraska from 1971 to 1979, and as a U.S. Senator from Nebraska from 1979 to 1997. A member of the Democratic Par ...

(1921–2005), Governor of Nebraska and US Senator * Eugene Jerome Hainer (1851–1929), US Congressman *

Don Hollenbeck Don Hollenbeck (March 30, 1905June 22, 1954) was a CBS newscaster, commentator, and associate of Edward R. Murrow and Fred W. Friendly. He died from fuel gas inhalation as it was discovered that his stove and oven had been turned on but not lit ( ...

(1905–1954), Radio newscaster and commentator * John Larkin (1901–1965), Hollywood screen-writer *

Gilbert L. Laws Gilbert Lafayette Laws (March 11, 1838 – April 25, 1907) was an American politician, newspaper publisher and businessman. He served as the Nebraska Secretary of State and as a member of the United States House of Representatives during th ...

(1838–1907), US Congressman *

Gordon MacRae Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer and radio/television host who appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals ''Oklahoma!'' (1955) and ''Carousel'' (1956) and who pl ...

(1921–1986), singer and actor * Turner M. Marquett (1829–1894), US Congressman *

Samuel Roy McKelvie Samuel Roy McKelvie (April 15, 1881 – January 6, 1956) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Nebraska. McKelvie served as the 19th governor of Nebraska, from 1919 to 1923. He was also the 13th lieutenant governor of Nebraska, from ...

(1881–1956), Governor of Nebraska''Where They're Buried'', p. 422 * Milton Montgomery
(1825–1897), Civil War Brevet Brigadier General * Albinus Nance">Milton Montgomery">''Where They're Buried'', p. 422 * Milton Montgomery
(1825–1897), Civil War Brevet Brigadier General * Albinus Nance (1848–1911), Governor of Nebraska * Louise Pound (1872–1958), American folklorist, linguist, and English professor * William A. Poynter (1848–1909), Governor of Nebraska * Peter Sauer (1900–1949), Russian-born World Wrestling champion using the ring name Ray Steele *

Charles Starkweather Charles Raymond Starkweather (November 24, 1938 – June 25, 1959) was an American spree killer who murdered eleven people in Nebraska and Wyoming between December 1957 and January 1958, when he was nineteen years old. He killed ten of his victi ...

(1938–1959), spree killerZimmer, Ed. (2009)
"Wyuka Cemetery: A Driving & Walking Tour".
Retrieved July 9, 2022 *

Jesse Burr Strode Jesse Burr Strode (February 18, 1845 – November 10, 1924) was an American Republican Party politician. He was born in Fulton County, Illinois on February 18, 1845, and graduated from Abingdon College in Abingdon, Illinois (which was later co ...

(1845–1924), US Congressman *

John Milton Thayer John Milton Thayer (January 24, 1820March 19, 1906) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and a postbellum United States Senator from Nebraska. Thayer served as Governor of Wyoming Territory and Governor of Nebraska. T ...

(1820–1906), Governor of Nebraska and US Senator * Roy Henry Thorpe (1874–1951), US Congressman * Bobby Rae Williams (1942–2012), professional football player

References

External links

Wyuka Cemetery
* * {{Authority control Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Nebraska 1869 establishments in Nebraska Buildings and structures in Lincoln, Nebraska Protected areas of Lancaster County, Nebraska Jewish cemeteries in Nebraska History of Lincoln, Nebraska National Register of Historic Places in Lincoln, Nebraska