History Department plans 4 cemetery tours in Albion in August
Provided photo: This picture shows the Church monument at Mount Albion Cemetery.
ALBION – The Orleans County Department of History will host a series of cemetery tours running every Sunday in August beginning at 6 p.m.
A tradition started by Bill Lattin, County Historian Matthew Ballard will lead visitors through three historic cemeteries in the Albion area. Ballard succeeded Lattin as county historian.
August 6 at 6 p.m. – Mt. Albion Cemetery
This tour will explore the gravesites of Albion’s pioneer settlers, prominent attorneys, politicians, and criminals (east end). The group will assemble at the cemetery chapel and depart at 6:05 p.m.
August 13 at 6 p.m. – St. Joseph’s Old Cemetery
Located on Brown Street, north of the Village of Albion, take a tour of Albion’s first Catholic cemetery and explore the important history of Orleans County’s earliest immigrant populations. The group will assemble at the front entrance of the cemetery and depart at 6:05 p.m. Parking is available on the main driveways of the cemetery or along Brown Street.
August 20 at 6 p.m. – St. Joseph’s New Cemetery
Visitors will explore the grounds of Albion’s “new” Catholic cemetery, located on East Avenue near Bullard Park. When this burial ground opened in the early 1920s, a painstaking process of exhuming and reinterring bodies took place between this cemetery and the “old” Brown Road cemetery. The group will assemble at the cemetery chapel and depart at 6:05 p.m.
August 27 at 6 p.m. – Mt. Albion Cemetery
This concluding tour will examine some of the “overlooked” individuals in Orleans County’s history, focusing on veterans, criminals, politicians, and local entrepreneurs (west end). The group will assemble at the cemetery chapel and depart at 6:05 p.m.
All tours are free and open to the public, no advanced registration is required. Tours will take place rain or shine, so bring an umbrella or jacket in case of inclement weather.
