Santa Clara Community Organization – Eugene

NEWS RELEASE for Memorial Day Calendars
May 20, 2024

SUBJECT: Luper Pioneer Cemetery Open Memorial Day Weekend – May 25-26-27

CONTACT: Peter Thurston, President, Luper Cemetery Inc. 541-321-0798

Luper Pioneer Cemetery will be open 9 am to 4 pm, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, May 25, 26, 27. On Memorial Day (5/27) old-time acoustical music by The Poodle Creek Pickers will be presented at 11 AM and 1:30 PM. All three days there will be self-guided tours of the cemetery with interpretive signs describing the history of the southern Willamette Valley.

From 12:30 to 1:30 there will be a “Letters from the Trail” presentation by Karen Rainsong of the Singing Creek Educational Center. This will be a family-friendly presentation with a talk by Mrs. Annabelle Smith of the Oregon Trail. The stories begin in 1856, and Mrs. Smith just arrived last Fall after a six-month journey overland with her family on the wagon train, and has stories (kid friendly) to tell about the trip.

Mrs. Smith will have some letters to hand out, written by children on the Oregon Trail, detailing their thoughts, feelings and experiences along the journey. Receive your own letter to take home! (The letters are fictional, written by Karen Rainsong, based on journals and historical artifacts from the trail.) “

Luper Cemetery (also known as Irving or Baker Cemetery) was founded in the mid-1800s. Eighteen of the people interred at Luper Cemetery arrived in 1853, by way of the Oregon Trail and the Free Emigrant Road across central Oregon. Over 160 people are buried at Luper Cemetery. Self-guided tours may be taken anytime (Saturday, Sunday, and Monday).

Please check www.lupercemetery.com for more historical information about the cemetery, and other resources.


DIRECTIONS to Luper Cemetery: From Eugene, take River Rd. north to Beacon Drive, on the north boundary of Santa Clara, and follow signs west. From Junction City, take River Rd. south, turn west onto Beacon Drive and travel about a ½ mile to a white metal gate, on the north side of Beacon Drive. Proceed through the gate approximately 1/2 mile to the parking lot and cemetery entrance. The cemetery may be accessed every day from dawn to dusk by walking the half-mile gravel road from West Beacon Drive to the cemetery.

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