Enterprise Cemetery
7041 Vista Drive
Ferndale, Whatcom County, Washington 98248
360-366-5341
Directions
Enterprise Cemetery is situated between Grandview Road and Fox Road on the west side of Vista Drive. To get to the cemetery from I-5, take the Grandview Road exit (Exit 266). Turn left (west) onto Grandview Road and continue for 1 mile until you reach Vista Drive. Then, turn right (north) onto Vista Drive and proceed for half a mile, where you will find the cemetery entrance on your left, on the west side of the road.
History
According to legend, two white men were buried at this site in the early 1820s. However, in “Nooksack Tales and Trails,” claims that the first burial was an infant. Additionally, a longtime resident mentions that members of the Brown family were the first to be buried here, although this information cannot be confirmed. In Find A Grave, there are 48 memorials with the last name Brown. Of those, the earliest burial date is in 1882. The oldest verified burial belongs to Mr. Seriah Stevens, a Civil War veteran who passed away on 10 February 1881. To date, there are 521 veterans interred at this site, 25 of whom served in the Civil War.
Enterprise Cemetery was established on 30 January 1886, when Mr. David Wallace donated 1.5 acres of land to Mr. M. L. Gee, Mr. John J. Brown, and Mr. Franklin Brunson, the newly appointed trustees. Over the years, several additional parcels of land were added, and by 1900, the cemetery had expanded to thirteen acres.
Between 1915 and 1918, Ferndale Enterprise Cemetery in Whatcom County was transferred to the City of Ferndale. From 1918 until 2011, the City and the Ferndale Enterprise Cemetery Association alternately managed the cemetery. In 1995, the board of trustees, consisting of Mr. Paul Larsen, Mr. Tom Long, and Mr. Leonard Sund, purchased an additional fifteen acres, bringing the total size of the cemetery to 28 acres.
The Ferndale Enterprise Cemetery has integrated several graves from local cemeteries. One notable relocation occurred in 1994 when the Ferndale Catholic Cemetery graves were moved. Following this relocation, a memorial was erected with a list of the names of those deceased individuals whose graves were transferred.
Ferndale Enterprise Cemetery, located in Ferndale, is the most popular cemetery in the city. It ranks first among the two cemeteries in Ferndale. It is also ranked 10th out of 24 cemeteries in Whatcom County, 28th out of 214 in Washington State, and 2,813th in the United States.
Enterprise Cemetery and Mountain View Cemetery are part of Whatcom County Cemetery District No. 7. There is a resident sexton at Enterprise Cemetery. The cemetery records are very incomplete and have been significantly supplemented with information from other sources, such as newspaper clippings, family records, and mortuary records.
Additional information
Visit the Enterprise Cemetery Website
