“Kiowa County’s Forgotten Cemeteries”
Galatea Cemetery
To find the Galatea Cemetery: Travel 13 miles west of Eads, CO on Hwy 96 to County Road 27 (CR-27), then north for 3/4 mile to CR-U. Turn right on CR U and travel one mile. The cemetery is located on the north side of the road.
Legal Description: SE 1/4, SE 1/4, SE 1/4 of Section 4, Range 18, Township 50
Galatea was established before 1900 and has nine identified gravesites that were located using sonar technology. Only the gravesite of William Shular has the tombstone intact. All other sites are marked by white steel markers designed by Benny W. Fischer and made by the Eads High School FFA Chapter.
France-Harker Cemetery
To find the France-Harker Cemetery: Travel 9 miles east of Eads, Colorado on Hwy 96 to County Road 49 (CR-49 is May Valley Road) and turn left (north) on CR-49 and travel 3/4 mile to CR-R. Turn right on CR-R and travel 3/4 mile. The cemetery is located on the right side of the road.
The cemetery has 21 gravesites and 10 tombstones that are intact and preserved. The earliest known grave is for Frank Chilson (1895) and the latest known grave is for Charlie V. France (1942.) Most of the tombstones are from the late 1800s to the first decade of the twentieth-century.
Walter Scott Cemetery
To find the Walter Scott Cemetery: Travel south out of Eads, Colorado on the paved county landfill road for 1 mile. The cemetery is located on the left side (east) of the road and is separated from the road by a fence.
Walter Scott is the first and oldest cemetery in the Eads area and was established in the late 1800s to early 1900s. The cemetery was moved to another site east of town around 1920. However, the gravesites located at the Walter Scott Cemetery were not moved because next-of-kin could not be found or contacted for permission for repatriation. Therefore, these gravesites have remained alone on the hill south of Eads and through the years were forgotten. They are now part of the developing Jackson’s Trails project that will provide walking trails to the cemetery, Jackson’s Pond, and back into Eads at a historical barn being developed into the trailhead for the project. The oldest grave at the Walter Scott Cemetery is from 1899 and is for a one-month old baby. The latest identified grave is from 1916.
MORE INFORMATION
Visit the Canyons & Plains website for additional information about the cemeteries and other historical attractions in southeast Colorado.
