Mercur Cemetery | Mercur, UT

The town of Mercur first came into existence in 1870 not as Mercur, but as Lewistown. A small gold rush began when gold was discovered at the head of Lewistown Canyon. The population reached as high as 2000 in 1873. Silver also was booming in the area, but soon died out and the city of Lewistown was a ghost town by 1880. After a viable process for mining using Cyanide was adopted, the city began to flourish again extracting Gold from newly mined ore as well as the leftover tailings. The city of Mercur was established in 1896. The town enjoyed a reputation of being the most moral and quiet camp on the continent due to the number of churches and good school system. On June 26, 1902, in the lower part of town, hot grease in a skillet caught fire in a Chinese lunch shack.  The owner stepped out back and threw the burning grease on the ground.  But a gust of wind blew the searing grease against the wooden walls of the shack.

Within a matter of minutes, the entire lower part of town was engulfed in flames.  Within 2 ½ hours, every business building in Mercur Utah had been destroyed.  Even the stone ones.  Fortunately, most of the homes as well as the mill were spared.

At the time there was about 5000 residents in the city, making it one of Utah’s biggest cities. The entire business area which at that time was about 40-50 stores, were completely destroyed. The city rebuilt itself and continued mining operations, but by 1913, the mining operations had discontinued and by 1916, the buildings were all gone. In recent history, the gold mine was resumed by Barrick Mercur Gold Mines Foundations, still pulling millions of dollars from the old mines.

The City Cemetery is marked only by a large rock with a plaque and houses one of the spookiest cemeteries anywhere. Weathered tombstones dot the area with picket fences around the graves. Several paranormal researchers have documented feeling uneasy, feeling like they are being watched, voices coming through digital equipment, and intelligent answers to questions posed. Several researchers also complain of batteries being drained and equipment not working properly. At night, you may also see orbs, hear galloping horses, and whisperings. This is one of the most active locations in Utah