In April 1883, Catherine Thompson, age 19, died of consumption. She was buried in the southwest corner of the southwest Quarter of 32-07-11(-W1). Then, in February of 1884, John Sanderson sold four acres of the land from the south west quarter of 32-07-11(-W1) for the sum of $40.00, the said land to be used for the purpose of a cemetery. The following is a quotation taken from the original copy of the agreement:

"Now the condition of the obligation is such that if the said trustees shall well and truly pay or cause to be paid to the above bounden John Sanderson, his heirs and assigns shall by good and sufficient deed of conveyance in fee simple convey and assure or cause to be conveyed and assured into the said trustees or their successors in office for ever free from all encumbrances within the space of two years. Then the said obligation shall be void otherwise shall be and remain in full force and virtue, signed, sealed and delivered in the presence of John Moir, John Sanderson and Arthur Holland."

In July of 1884, Catherine Thompson's sister Hannah died, also of consumption. She was sixteen years old. It is interesting to note from the old records that out of the first twelve burials in Brookdale Cemetery only two were over the age of twenty-two. Deaths among children and infants seemed a common thing.

Brookdale Cemetery was operated by a board of trustees at that time. In 1903 the Reeve and councillor McLean were appointed to confer with the trustees of Brookdale regarding the municipality assuming control of the cemetery. This was done forthwith and today is still under the council.

Each year the council hires a caretaker and the cemetery is carefully and beautifully kept. Many people care for their own plots while others at a distance have someone here tend theirs. So it is that Brookdale is one of the best kept cemeteries in the country. All through the summer the flowers of the season make a colorful array, and the peonies seem to thrive and they bloom in abundance.

Down through the years there have been many caretakers of the cemetery. Two men who looked after the grounds for a number of years were W. J. Rex and H. Miller. Mr. Rex lived in the lodge during the summer and kept the flowers and plants well cultivated. Mr. Miller spent many years caring for the cemetery. He would ride his bicycle out from town in the morning and back again at night. Both these men loved gardening and Brookdale was kept immaculate under their care — truly God's garden.

(Source: Holland Manitoba 1877-1967, pp 127f [1967; Adapted])

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The first burial in this cemetery in the Rural Municipality of Victoria was in 1883.

(Source: Manitoba Historical Society)

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Dominion Land Survey coordinates: LSD04-32-07-11-W1

In the Municipality of Victoria

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A part of the community's story, and those of its inhabitants, from the early days of European settlement through roughly 2002 is told in the two-volume work entitled "RM of Victoria". A free digital version of this and many other Manitoba local history books can be found online in the University of Manitoba Digital Collections. There is also a list of such books organized by district and town name on the Manitoba Historical Society's website on their page entitled "Finding Aid: Manitoba Local History Books".

A list of burials in this cemetery is available from the Manitoba Genealogical Society (reference #0057), transcribed by a member or members in 1984-1985. Also available to MGS members is a searchable online database named the "MGS Manitoba Name Index" (or MANI). Some additional information is contained in the 1996 MGS publication "Carved in Stone: Manitoba Cemeteries and Burial Sites" (revised edition, Special Projects Publication, 106 pages).