Fairview Cemetery

The origin of Fairview Cemetery on Cerrillos Road, Santa Fe is obscure, however, until 1899 it was operated by the Fairview Cemetery Company. From 1899 until 1978, the Santa Fe Woman's Board of Trade and its successor, the Santa Fe Woman's Club, owned and operated the cemetery. Until the mid-1900s, Fairview was the major place of non-Catholic interment in Santa Fe. Rising costs of maintenance have left the modestly endowed cemetery in financial difficulties. In 1981 the County of Santa Fe returned ownership of the cemetery to the Woman's Club after only three years of stewardship. The fate of Fairview is presently unsettled. Most recently, a group of concerned Santa Feans have formed the Fairview Cemetery Preservation Association. With the aid of the Santa Fe Historical Society, efforts are being made to place Fairview on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties. In this historic Santa Fe property such notables as Governors Prince, Seligman and Thornton, and prominent New Mexicans such as Catron, Nusbaum, Spitz, and Staab are buried.