Wamblee Valley Memorial Park (39-27.701N, 105-19.604W)

Overall: This site is not in too many references anywhere that I could find. I found it by luck looking at a USGS Topographical Map of the area. A touch of research on Google and Jefferson Country site identifies this as "French Canadian."

Oldest Grave: Two restored markers are tough to read, but both look to be from 1879: Dennis Akins and Johnnie D. M. (found the M on the small foot marker) ; Akins Gravestone ; Johnnie M Grave Marker; Johnnie M Gravestone with Footer

Photos: Pictures on Photobucket

Observations: This was a very strange find. At the very end of a mountain road - sandwiched between two houses and some private land. To find the site, travel on 285 to south of Conifer, get off at Richmond Hill Road and follow it into the hills, about a mile in you will get to a T in the road, take a right (Wamblee Valley Rd), take this for about 2.5 miles and you will come to a Y in the road, to the right is clearly marked as a private drive and to the left is Memorial Park Way - take this left and just down from there the road ends and there is the site.

There were only a handful of marked graves, but lots and lots of markers (metal and wooden) from what appears to be a restoration project. However, that restoration does not look to be very recent.

This site just looks like a place that time forgot. Not too may people live down Wamblee Valley Road, so the site probably is only seen by a few people a year.

Further Research: I am definitely going to do some more research on this site, very little is marked with lots of temporary markers. It also looks like it is from near the beginning of the gold rush (oldest markers were 1879, but only a handful in the 1800's, so most of those are probably the unmarked).