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Digging up history on graveyard I would like to know if anyone could tell me what year the graves were moved from Graveyard Hill in Phoenix to the present Phoenix Cemetery. One cemetery record says, "When Phoenix was called Gasburg, Henry Church, (who) died 1858, (was) buried near Hiram Colver, who died in 1857 on Butte." As I grew up, the hill was known as Graveyard Hill. My grandfather, Thomas W. Wright, helped move the graves. Any help would be appreciated. -- Myrna B., Medford You've stumped the best, Myrna. Local historians and Phoenix old-timers agree that some graves were moved from "Graveyard Hill," or Rose Street Hill, to the Phoenix Pioneer Cemetery. But no one is sure just how many graves were moved or when. Perhaps our readers can provide some clues. The Phoenix Pioneer Cemetery dates to sometime after Oct. 24, 1874, when Lewelleyn and Jemina Colver donated land for the project. The fact that the earliest grave in the cemetery -- belonging to Hiram Colver -- dates to 1857, 17 years before the creation of the cemetery, confirms your family's story about the graves being moved. One might assume that the graves were moved as soon as the new cemetery opened up, but another theory is that they were moved when people began to build on the old cemetery hill. We should hear soon whether any more graves are found when ground is broken for the hill's final development. The Phoenix Planning Commission is currently considering a proposal to add 34 more homes to the 13 undeveloped acres on the hill. (Send your questions to "Since You Asked," Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; or by fax to (541) 776-4376; or by e-mail to: [email protected] Please include your name, address and phone number for verification.) Today's News Index Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA