The Unique History & Headstones of Star Cemetery [PICS]

James and Jemima Ayers

Star, Idaho. Star Cemetery is one of the most interesting, ornate, and best maintained gravesites in the Treasure Valley. Located at 9350 W. Floating Feather Road, James and Jemima Ayers generously transferred the ownership title to Star Cemetery's land to the city in 1900. In 1901, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows became the cemetery's trustees and erected a white fence around the graveyard.

Home of the Peace Cemetery

According to records from the City of Star, Star Cemetery was originally known as Home of the Peace Cemetery.

Information sourced from the Star Cemetery Maintenance District indicates the cemetery underwent a name-changed approximately 50-to-60 years ago when Ada County operators assumed management of the site.

Star Cemetery and the Oregon Trail

One of the most fascinating aspects of Star Cemetery are the storied souls laid to rest there. Interred within the hollowed grounds are frontiersmen and pioneers who died on the historical Oregon Trail around the year 1870.

Graphic Credit: United States Bureau of Land Management

A two thousand-mile journey from Independence, Missouri to Willamette Valley, Oregon, data from the Bureau of Land Management estimates as many as 20,000 people died on the grueling pilgrimage—the majority of whom were laid to rest in unmarked graves along the trail.

Photo Credit: City of Star // Citizens of Star c. 1900

Veterans and Well-Known Local Families

Also resting in Star Cemetery are Veterans who fought in the trenches of World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. And although their headstones aren't as ornate as others, Veteran graves bear unmistakable presence throughout the grounds.

As you stroll through our exclusive photo gallery below, pay attention to the names on the gravestones. The Ayers, Breshears, Dancers, Mungers, and Blessinger families are among the thousands of Idahoans buried there. Even cooler, there are Treasure Valley streets named after these families and others!

Scroll down to take an exclusive photo tour of Star Cemetery!

After your tour of Star Cemetery...

...scroll on for another exclusive gallery of tombstone photos taken inside Joplin Cemetery, the Eternal Resting Place of Idaho's Pioneers!

Eagle, Idaho. Travel through time on a fascinating scroll through Joplin Cemetery. With graves that date back as far as the mid-1800s, Joplin Cemetery at the intersection of Chinden and Cloverdale is a trove of wonders.

Featuring exclusive photos of the cemetery's oldest graves, many belong to small children while others belong to entire families with well-known Idaho names like Joplin, Driggs, Caldwell, and more.

- S N E A K P R E V I E W -

Photo Credit: Ryan Valenzuela // Canva

🪦 Tour One of Idaho's Oldest Cemeteries

Star Cemetery, Star, Idaho [Part I]

🗒️ Records from the City of Star report Star Cemetery was originally known as Home of the Peace Cemetery. But one of the most fascinating aspects of the cemetery are the storied souls laid to rest there.

🗺️ Interred within the hollowed grounds are frontiersmen and pioneers who died on the historical Oregon Trail around the year 1870. Veterans and prominent local families of yesterday can also be found there.

Joplin Cemetery: Idaho's Most Unique Burial Grounds

Joplin's Cemetery - Est. 1882 - Eagle, Idaho

"To the memory of the pioneer families who came to this valley in 1880. This sacred place is reserved and perpetuated as they found it. Dry and desolate, many were the hardships and privations endured. Dedicated to the spirit of the old timers and pioneers."

Scroll on for a unique tour of Idaho's most interesting cemetery!

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