I am a member of The Friends of the Historic Topeka Cemetery. The Friends support the cemetery which was incorporated in 1859 and I love being a part of sharing the history here.
The Friends have found a way to provide a small individual headstones for the hundreds of children lying in unmarked graves. The headstones are only $100 and must meet certain criteria but it's a way to finally provide these children with an identity.
The Friends also share the history of the Cemetery at Halloween through our Ghost Tours by providing stories of the people who are buried here. Founding Fathers of our city, Suffragettes, Major League Baseball players, Vice-Presidents, and the every day people of our community. Each year brings new historical stories and the community loves coming together at night in the cemetery to hear them.
The Friends group uses money they earn from various fundraising and events to purchase much needed items for this non-profit cemetery. We provided a handicap accessible picnic table, a new tent for the cemetery, many books for research and a bathroom update to name a few. The group came together to clean-up the cemetery office and porches.