Haven Priest Cemetery is located in Reno County in Haven Township near the town of Haven. The cemetery has been called both Priest Cemetery and Haven Cemetery, but sometime within the last few decades the two names were combined and it is now called Haven Priest Cemetery.
Haven traces its roots back to 1873 when the first school and post office opened, but the town wasn’t laid out until 1886 when the railroad came through. Haven was officially incorporated fourteen years later in 1901. The cemetery occupies about two acres on land once owned by William J. Priest, one of the early settlers of Haven.
William Priest and his wife Frances (née Vincent) came to Kansas in 1877 and claimed land in Haven Township, where they both resided until their deaths. William deeded a portion of his land to the Priest Cemetery Association in 1888. There were around fifty burials here when William deeded the land.
At least one resource says their daughter Emmie Priest was the first person to be buried here in 1880, but there were nearly a dozen burials at Priest Cemetery before Emmie died. Emmie was the first Priest to be buried on the family homestead, and was probably the first of the Priest children to be born in Kansas.
Emmie’s brother Elmer was born the year after she died, and he was buried here beside her three years later. The newspaper said Elmer was six months old, but his gravestone indicates that he was one or two years old.
William and Frances are buried here, too. Frances gave birth to twelve children, and just Emmie and Elmer died before her. When she died at age 64, she had thirty-five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. William died a few years later having lived over 40 years on in Haven Township. Both William and Frances’ obituaries said they were buried at Priest Cemetery.
Their daughter Pearl was the last Priest to be buried at Priest Cemetery. She was just 42 when she died in 1934, leaving five children behind. Her husband was not mentioned in her obituary, and he married someone else twelve days after she died.
Haven Founders Buried at Haven Priest Cemetery
Catherine and Cyrus Mount
Two children of Kate (née Hankey) and Cyrus Mount were buried here in 1873, the earliest documented burials at Haven Priest Cemetery. Twin infants Jesse and and Anna Mount died four years before the Priest family arrived and claimed this land. Their graves are not marked today, but they are presumed to be buried near their parents.
Kate and Cyrus Mount were married in 1866 and came to Kansas in 1870, placing them among the original Haven pioneers. The couple died within a few weeks of one another in October, 1908.
Charles and Sarah Peckham
Charles Peckham is credited by some as having the “first sod shanty” in Haven Township. He came through Kansas in 1871 on his way to Abilene and decided to make his home here. He met and married Sarah Hess here in 1874.
In addition to being a city founder, he served as vice president of Citizens Bank of Haven, first secretary of the Haven Commercial Club, organizer of the Haven Mill Company, and first trustee of Haven township.
Caleb and Lucretia Cupps
Caleb Cupps and his wife Lucretia (née Younger) came to Haven Township in 1871 with their first child and claimed land here.
Caleb served as first postmaster of the rural Haven post office which was established in 1873 on his farm about two miles east of the current city. When Caleb died at age 40, his obituary said he was buried at Priest Cemetery.
Fred Thorp
Fred Thorp wasn’t here as early as some, but he was here to see the town of Haven founded. He married Hattie, one of the daughters of Kate and Cyrus Mount.
When the rural Haven post office was moved to the city of Haven, Fred became the first official postmaster of the Haven post office. He was also the editor of Haven’s first newspaper, a cashier at Citizens State Bank, a lumber and construction materials dealer, and the mayor of Haven from 1913-1915.
Other Burials at Haven Cemetery
The Tylors
The gravestone with the earliest death dates on it likely honors people who are not buried here. Thomas Tylor died in 1854 and his daughter Sarah died in 1867, and both of their names are on a family gravestone here.
It’s highly unlikely that Thomas and Nancy were buried at Haven Priest Cemetery or were ever in Haven Township. These engravings are likely epitaphs to complete the family stone.
The Caples
German immigrant Philip Caple came to Haven Township with his wife in 1874 and was very successful farming here before he got sick with consumption (tuberculosis). He was a member of the I.O.O.F., who performed his burial ceremony.
Phillip’s mother Catherine is also buried here.
Howard Van Campen
When Howard Van Campen‘s mother was notified of his death by the Army, she was told he died from wounds received in action in France. A correction was later issued that he died of disease at a hospital in Liverpool (likely influenza contracted at Camp Funston). Howard’s body was returned in 1920 for burial.
The Rau Family
Nancy (nee Walker) and Jacob Rau came to Haven Township in 1872, shortly after the area began to be settled. George Rau, Jacob’s father, died in 1875 and may have been among the first to be buried here, or his name may have been inscribed as a cenotaph.
There are at least eight members of the Rau family buried here, including Nancy and Jacob’s son, banker John Rau, who was hit by a car in 1930 after surviving an accidental gunshot wound two years prior.
Sarepta Henderson
I thought the Henderson monument was unusual, as it’s the only gravestone that I can recall where “husband of” is engraved and the woman’s name, not the husband’s, is carved twice in stone. Sarepta Henderson is the focal point of this gravestone. She was born Sarepta Williams, and married Napoleon Bonaparte Henderson in 1880. Sarepta moved to Inman and then Los Angeles after her husband died, but she was returned here for burial at Priest Cemetery beside him.
The Mossmans
Francis and Lauren Mossman were the reason we visited this cemetery. They were the children of Mary Mossman, who is buried at Maple Grove Cemetery in Valley Center. I was touched when researching Mary and felt compelled to reunite her with her children that I found on a census record. Until recently, Mary was not identified as the mother of Francis and Lauren on Find a Grave, and neither of their memorials had a gravestone photo. Today the family is reconnected online, and the children’s gravestone is documented.
Additional Details
The Sunflower, Reno County Genealogical Society, November 2012
History of Reno County, Kansas; its people, industries and institutions
Haven Cemetery, Reno County Genealogical Society
Haven Priest Cemetery, KSGenWeb
Haven Priest Cemetery, Kansas Trails
Share your thoughts