St. Francis Xavier Cemetery, Toledo

Administered by: St. Francis Xavier Parish
139 Spencer Rd.
Toledo, WA 98591
360-864-4126
Year Established: 1838
Developed Acres: 1

In 1838, St. Francis Xavier Cemetery in Toledo, Lewis County, administered by St. Francis Xavier Church, was established. With the exception of Native American burial sites, this may be the oldest cemetery in the State of Washington. The first burial on record in this cemetery was that of Cecile Rochaon, who was buried on July 31, 1839. The extant St. Francis burial books and plat maps date only to 1875.  They both start with the burial of Elizabeth West, who died on September 30, 1875.  This was 36 years after Cecile Rochaon’s burial in 1839.  The burials during these intervening years are recorded in the priests’ funeral book, but no current maps exist to indicate their burial locations.  A 1901 fire destroyed most of the original records. In August of 1916, another fire destroyed the mission church. In 1918, the Franciscans assumed responsibility for the mission.  On February 10, 1932, following Ash Wednesday evening services, a fire in the church sacristy gutted the building, with the exception of the church’s front wall.  Only the rectory and what records that were kept there were spared.