BANFF – The Old Banff Cemetery is steeped in history as the final resting place for many of Banff’s earliest pioneers and founding families.
Jon Whyte, a renowned Banff author, historian and poet who died in 1992, once pronounced the graveyard on the south end of Grizzly Street as the “the nicest cemetery in Canada.”
But over the years, lichen, moss, bacteria and air pollutants have built up on many of the gravestones, making them hard or impossible to read.
Paulette Zarkos, who is spearheading a project to clean the gravestones, said without proper preservation, Banff’s heritage and wealth of history will be lost for future generations.
“We are so lucky that we have this beautiful graveyard here in town; it is a monument to the people who came into the Rocky Mountains and forged a living and raised their families,” she said.
“The bottom line is if we don’t take the time now to preserve those gravestones, they’re going to be gone, and the lichen and moss and bacteria will erode them away forever.”
The Old Banff Cemetery is a resting place for more than 2,000 souls, among them baby Adelia Woodworth, who, in 1890, was one of the first Banffites to be buried there.
The engraved tombstones hold the names of many of Banff’s historic figures and community builders, such as Dr. Robert Brett, Jim Brewster, Mary Schäffer Warren, Norman Luxton, Norman Sanson and Bill Peyto, but mingled among them are also those whose stories remain a mystery.
The cemetery also provided space for the nearby Bankhead mining community. The Bankhead Miners Memorial honours the 15 miners killed over the former town’s 22-year mining history.
Several other historically significant features are included in the cemetery, too, such as a military field of honour.
Zarkos herself has family members buried at the Old Banff Cemetery, including her grandfather Samuel Zarkos who died in 1933, as well as her mother, father and brother.
“In some cases, there’s six generations of those early families that are still living here in Banff. The history in the Old Banff Cemetery is truly incredible,” she said.
“We’ve got so many very, very important people in that graveyard and it’s a shame that you can’t read some of the headstones.”
To keep the history at the cemetery intact, Zarkos said families are invited to take part in the preservation and cleaning of the grave monuments and markers this summer.
She said a group of volunteers will use a "do no harm" practice that follows guidelines set by historical societies around the world. A product called D2 Biologic Solution will be available, free of charge.
“It will remove the debris built up on the stones and not harm in any way the integrity of the markers or the surrounding flora – and it is safe for animals,” Zarkos said.
Shelley MacAulay, a born and raised Banffite, is a descendent of Adelia Woodworth – one of the first people buried at the site.
She said her great grandfather Benjamin F. Woodworth came to Banff from Nova Scotia in 1883 with his brother Fred Woodworth, who is Adelia’s father.
MacAulay is excited about the project Zarkos is spearheading at the cemetery.
“It’s a phenomenal community project,” she said.
“It’s quite outstanding that she’s had such a response. That’s what is so wonderful about this community.”
For those families who can’t participate in the cleanup, permission is needed before the growing number of volunteers can start the work on the cemetery gravestones.
Letters of permission can be emailed to [email protected].
“We have so many people and so many incredible families who want to come and volunteer, “ Zarkos said.
“We’ve got the Wilsons, the Costigans, the Brewsters and the Tronos. I could on and on and on and on about the families that are coming to clean gravestones.”
In 2016, the Old Banff Cemetery was declared a municipal historic resource for the Town of Banff. It was only the second cemetery in Alberta to be designated.
