In July 2019, I went out to visit Christi in Omaha for our last true road trip. I would visit her two more times after that, but we stayed in the Omaha/Council Bluffs, Iowa area on those occasions.

Before we headed east, we went to an Omaha cemetery I’d read about but never visited. It’s thought to be the oldest one in Omaha. One thing you’ll notice right away if you visit is that many of the graves of Omaha’s founders are accompanied by interpretive signs. It was incredibly helpful.

Origins of Prospect Hill Cemetery

Nebraska didn’t officially become America’s 37th state until 1867. Before then it was considered a territory and was governed as one.

Prospect Hill’s web site explains that after Nebraska’s territorial legislature authorized cemeteries in 1858, Prospect Hill Cemetery officially began with Burial Permit #1 for Alonzo F. Salisbury. Byron Reed, an early Omaha real estate developer and financier, was the founder. However, many folks were already buried there, including several Native Americans in unmarked graves. Since then, there have been approximately 15,000 burials recorded here.

You can’t make out Salisbury’s inscription in the photo due to the grass. His story intrigues me. A native of Vermont, Alonzo was a stagecoach driver who came to Omaha in 1855 and he operated a mill soon after. In 1856, Salisbury was elected to represent Douglas County in the lower house of the Nebraska territorial legislature. He died on Oct. 4, 1858, likely 50 years old. His cause of death is unknown.

The historical sign also shares:

There are veterans from every American war beginning with the War of 1812. Also interred here are nearly 100 soldiers who died on active duty during the Civil War or while serving at Omaha Barracks (Fort Omaha) from 1863-1887. In 1887, administrative affairs were taken over by Forest Lawn Cemetery. However, in the 1890s, lot owners formed an association to operate Prospect Hill.

In 1979, Prospect Hill was designated an Historic Site by the Landmarks Commission of Omaha and by the Omaha City Council.  The Prospect Hill Cemetery Historical Site Development Foundation was formed to aid in the development of historical/educational aspects of the cemetery. Burials are still taking place there.

Landscaping

One thing I didn’t quite understand was what the landscaping plan was here. I don’t know if it was intentional that they mowed but left the areas around the markers untrimmed so that a number of the inscriptions were hidden. The picture below can give you an idea of what I mean.

In visiting the current web site this week, I learned that Prospect Hill now has what they call Weed Whackers and ShrubBubs programs as part of their volunteer outreach. I’m thinking that somebody mows and another group takes care of the trimming around the markers. We probably visited on a day in between those efforts. It’s impressive to me that they have a number of volunteers helping to take care of the place.

Millard Family

It’s hard to read any history of early Omaha without encountering the last name Millard. There are 11 Millards buried at Prospect Hill. This large obelisk is for Ezra Millard (1833-1886). One of several siblings, his family emigrated to America from Canada and settled in Omaha in 1856 after a some years in Sioux City, Iowa.

Along with young brother Joseph, Ezra started a banking business in 1856. In 1866, Ezra left that bank to found the Omaha National Bank, now part of the U.S. Bank system.

Ezra served as Omaha’s mayor from 1869 to 1871. He and his wife, Anna, had at least six children together. Several are buried at Prospect Hill.

The town of Millard was laid out in 1870 by Ezra, and named for him. A post office was established in Millard in 1873, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1967. The town was incorporated in 1881. After much legal wrangling, the town of Millard was annexed by the city of Omaha in 1971.

In 1886, Ezra died in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. of heart complications. At the time of his death, he was employed as the treasurer of the Omaha Cable Tramway Company. He was only 50 years old.

Born in 1836, Joseph Millard was in the land business in Omaha before moving to Montana to open a bank there. He returned to Omaha in 1866 and became director, president, and cashier of the Omaha National Bank that brother Ezra started. He was also one of the incorporators of the Omaha & Northwestern Railroad Company in 1869.

Joseph followed his brother into politics, serving as Omaha’s mayor from 1871 to 1872. For 15 years, he was a director of the Union Pacific Railroad Company, six years of which he served in the capacity of a government director.

Joseph was elected as a Republican to the Senate in 1901, to fill the vacancy in the term beginning March 4, 1901, serving from March 28, 1901 to March 3, 1907. During his term, he served as chairman of the Committee on Inter-Oceanic Canals (Fifty-ninth Congress). He was not a candidate for re-election in 1906. He returned to banking in Omaha after that.

Joseph’s wife, Caroline Grover Millard, was a native of New Jersey. She and Joseph had two children together. She died on Jan. 3, 1901 after a long illness at age 64. Joseph died on Jan. 13, 1922 at age 85. Their daughter, Jessie, never married and died in 1950 at age 85. She is buried with her parents. Son Willard, who also became a banker, died in 1930 and is buried in California.

Prospect Hill’s Only Mausoleum

Prospect Hill’s only mausoleum was built for the Megeath family at the direction of James G. Megeath in 1897. His son, Charles, who died in 1893 at age 32 of dropsy, was buried at Prospect Hill. His remains were moved into the mausoleum after its completion.

With Gothic and Roman architectural themes, the Megeath mausoleum was designed by noted Omaha architect Thomas R. Kimball. He designed many buildings and mansions in Omaha. Weighting 210 tons, it was constructed in Barre, Vt. and transported to Omaha where it was reconstructed in the cemetery. With a roof made of three 22 ft.-long slabs of granite, the inside of the mausoleum is lined with marble and has nine crypts.

Born in 1824 in Virginia, James Gabriel Megeath arrived in Omaha in 1854, having spent time in California operating a mercantile during the gold rush days. Successful in retail and freight operations, he amassed a number of holdings. His construction of portable warehouses as the Union Pacific Railroad’s track was being laid capitalized on favorable circumstances. James was also active in Omaha government and politics.

James’ wife, Virginia, died in 1898 at age 68. James died in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1906 at age 81. Some of the Megeath children are interred with James and Virginia.

A Young Bride To Be Dies

Sadly, one of the Megeath grandchildren is also interred in the mausoleum. Born in 1859 to George and Ida Megeath (James and Virginia’s son), Mary Elizabeth Megeath was a well-educated and popular young lady who loved animals and being outdoors. In 1916, she was crowned Queen of Ak-Sar-Ben (Nebraska spelled backwards) at their coronation ball, a major society event.

Engaged to marry Herbert Connell, son of a local physician and nephew of a state senator, Mary was excited about her future. But near the time of her wedding, she contracted typhoid fever after a bout of influenza. She died on May 6, 1919 at the age of 23. One source I found said she was buried in her elaborate Ak-Sar-Ben coronation robes, while another stated she wore her wedding gown.

There’s a disappointing postscript I must add. In early October 2022, someone cut off the bronze gate of the Megeath mausoleum and gained entrance. It was discovered that several chunks of marble had also been stolen. It will cost between $3,000 to $6,000 to make repairs and replace the gate. Fundraising efforts are underway to cover those costs.

It saddens and angers me that people do things like this, but it’s becoming more frequent at cemeteries these days.

I’ll have more stories from Prospect Hill Cemetery in Part II.