History
Calvary Cemetery, also known as Mount Calvary Cemetery, is a historic Catholic cemetery located on a hill northeast of downtown Lewistown, Fergus County, Montana. It was established in 1895. The cemetery is significant for marking early settlement patterns in Lewistown, which was incorporated in 1899, and is noted for its wealth of funerary art. The cemetery is large and still active, with older burials concentrated on the hilltop and numerous interesting tombstones from the second half of the 20th century in the lower section.
Ubet was a stage stop settlement founded in 1880 on the Ft. Benton–Billings stagecoach route by lumberman A. R. Barrows. It was located in what was then Fergus County, Montana, but is now Judith Basin County, approximately 3 miles west of Garneill. The name 'Ubet' supposedly came from Barrows' response to a challenge for a post office name: 'You bet!' At its peak, Ubet included a two-story log hotel, a stagecoach barn, post office, icehouse, saloon, blacksmith shop, and a stable. Notable figures like Liver-Eating Johnson and cowboy artist Charlie Russell were among its clientele.
After the advent of railroads in the area, Ubet's importance as a stage stop diminished, and the settlement gradually withered away. By 1939, only one or two log buildings remained, used by sheepherders. A Ubet Cemetery (also called Ubet-Garneill Cemetery) is still extant on the Ubet Ranch.
Landscape and markers
The cemetery is a physical record of the harshness of the frontier. The dates carved into the markers tell a story of brief booms and sudden collapses, of winters that took the young and mining accidents that took the strong. To walk among these graves is to feel the immense weight of the past pressing down on the present landscape.
Who is buried here
The stones here tell the story of the settlement. Paul William Harrison Hanley (19 Dec 1893 – 22 Dec 1976): Born in Helena, Lewis and Clark County, Montana. Died in Lewistown, Fergus County, Montana. Buried in Calvary Cemetery. George R. "Sonny" Smith (1915 – 2012): Born in Gilt Edge, Montana. A cowboy his entire life, he was raised and educated in Gilt Edge, and went to high school in Lewistown. He worked for the Park Saddle Horse Company in Glacier National Park, guiding trips for over two weeks, including for the Rockefeller family. In 1941, he married Annie Komarek and they ranched in Fort Maginnis, Grass Range, Augusta, and Chinook, Montana. They had three children: Caren (deceased), Barry, and Mike. Sonny was involved in breeding horses and rodeo, serving as president and vice president of the Northern Montana Rodeo Association. In later years, he traded old cowboy gear and was an original trustee of the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center. He continued to ride until a hip replacement at age 87. Annie passed away in 2008, and Sonny passed away in 2012 at the age of 96. Both are buried in the Lewistown Cavalry Cemetery. Daniel “Cracker Box Dan” Nealon (1849 – 1916): Corporal Daniel Nealon served in Company H, 7th United States Cavalry during the Battle of the Little Bighorn, participating in the hilltop fight with Major Reno. He was born in Newport, Rhode Island. He never married and was buried in Calvary Cemetery, Lewistown, Fergus County, Montana, without a headstone. His exact birth date and heritage remain uncertain.
Visiting
Calvary Cemetery is located on North Elm Street, Lewistown, Montana, USA. Coordinates: 47.07551, -109.42387. For more information, the parish office can be reached at (406) 538-9306. The St. Leo Catholic Church is located at 102 W Broadway St, Lewistown, MT 59457. Directions to the cemetery are available via Google Maps. The cemetery is noted as being somewhat challenging to find but is considered worth the effort. Specific visiting hours are not explicitly stated, but cemeteries are generally accessible from dawn to dusk.