Cotopaxi Colorado: Russian Jewish Colony-cemetery-page

The Cotopaxi Cemetery Page

Note that this is a gentile cemetery.

While the first burials are reported to have been Russian Jews, you must understand that the Russian Jewish colonists were only here a few years, and now there are gentile burials surrounding the Colonist's grave site. My understanding is that there was a small fence around the Colony graves until the 1980's. I've been thinking about that, and perhaps I could fabricate a metal fence around the site again. Being a gentile, I was not aware that Haim and Evan are Kohen (Kohanim), and that they have religious restrictions concerning cemeteries.

Next is a photo of Evan and Haim just outside the Cotopaxi Cemetery.

Therefore, here are some photos of the gravesite.

The inscription on the grave stone says "Russian Jews Graves" and "1882".

My wife and I placed additional stones around the graves around 1993 or 1994, these stones came primarily from the Cotopaxi Mine, with a few others that were locally collected.

Click on these images to enlarge

May 24, 2008 - Cotopaxi Cemetery gravesite photos

November 30, 2009

A fence now separates the Cotopaxi colonist's graves

from the rest of the cemetery.

click over images for larger size

A special Thank You to

Jerry and Judy Klinger

with the

Jewish American Society For Historic Preservation (JASHP)

For Their Kind Act

of

Funding this Project.

Plans

Tentative plans

place a granite memorial like this one at the gravesite

and perhaps, cover the graves with stonework, like this, (except in a rectangular shape)

my back is not doing so well so we will see. Thanks for your patience.

a granite slab has been delivered to Spence Memorials in Colorado Springs. Once the proper wording is determined, this will be inscribed, then attached to a larger granite block via a metal framework. Then this can be placed at the gravesite, then a metal fence constructed around the graves.

Photo: an old crib in an old shed in Cotopaxi...

Julius Schwart(z),March 2, 1883 letter to HEAS:

"Now the facts are, that only six

of the houses are constructed on town lots,"

At issue is the number of graves and the age of the deceased. Some say three, some say four persons. Some say all babies, some indicate an older youth, some say one adult also buried here.

There are four grave spaces at the Russian Jews grave site at the Cotopaxi cemetery.

Through various references, three graves can be verified.

AS of Sept 2009, I THINK the graves represent:

Russian Jews - B6-212 source: Cemetery record

Shuteran/Chuteran baby girl, --B7-212 source: Cemetery record

Korpitsky/Grupitsky, baby son --B7-213 source: Cemetery record

Needleman/Nudelman baby - ? Source: referenced in letter from Swartz to HIAS

Upadate: Dec 2009 -
In the document titled Report of Mr. Julius Schwarz on the colony of Russian refuges at Cotopaxi, Colorado, established by the Hebrew Emigrant Aid Society of the United states. 1882. page 5,
Dated October 23, 1882
"On the 27th of May, the fifteen months old child of Joseph Nudelman, died,"

UNKNOWN B7-214 (Nudelman?)

It has come to our attention that the B7, B6 numbering system lacks accuracy.

Carol McNew has a record of the Cotopaxi cemetery burials.

"The first burials were Russian Jews in 1882..."

Carol McNew has also created an

I ndex of burials in the Cotopaxi Cemetery developed
from the cemetery record and transcribed headstones.

Cotopaxi, Colorado: Russian Jewish Colony