Cemeteries

This modest cemetery is located about 1.6 kilometers east of Aldergrove, at 28417 Fraser Highway. Traditionally, Aberdeen served the community of Aldergrove in the Township of Langley as well as residents on the Abbotsford (and prior to amalgamation, the Matsqui) side of the municipal border.

History and Information

• Aberdeen was established sometime in the 1880s, based on the dates of the earliest gravestones, but it may in fact be older as Aldergrove was settled at an earlier date.
• A number of pioneer families are represented in this cemetery.
• One notable interment is that of Charles Hill-Tout (1858- 1944). Born in England and educated at Oxford University, he was an early Abbotsford settler, who ran a local mill, and was also renowned for his pioneering ethnographic and anthropological field work among the Salish people.
• Aberdeen Cemetery also includes Veteran graves, and is (included) part of the Maple Leaf Legacy Project for Veteran graves.

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This is Abbotsford’s largest municipal cemetery, and the most centrally located, at 34070 Hazelwood Avenue. Hazelwood has many opportunities and boasts many new amenities and visual attractions.

History and Information

• Hazelwood Cemetery was established in the 1920s. It was originally named after the Maclure Family, reflected in the name of the Maclure Road Mennonite Cemetery, which is adjacent to Hazelwood Cemetery.
• Veterans from the First and Second World Wars are honoured by the monument of two gatepost cairns, constructed in 1972, at the entrance to Hazelwood Cemetery.
• There are two Canadian Legion areas (Old and New) and a small Legion memorial. The Legion area is cleaned every year by volunteers.
• This section of Hazelwood Cemetery has been reserved for war veterans and their spouses only.
• 12 Royal Air Force members who were killed while training at Abbotsford Airport are buried at Hazelwood. These Royal Air Force graves are looked after by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
• The only mausoleum in any of the civic cemeteries is located here in the older section, the Mercer Family Vault. The vault was built between 1919 and 1924, by Benn Mercer (1850-1933), and holds the remains of six members of the Mercer family. Benn Mercer was from Ireland, immigrated to Canada in the early 1880s, and to British Columbia in the late 1880s. The Mercers farmed land in the Matsqui / Ridgedale area, before relocating to the B.C. Interior. Benn Mercer lived on Boundary Road South in Burnaby at the time of his death.
• There are paved internal access roads, a wide parking lot for visitors and public washroom facilities at Hazelwood.

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Currently Available at Hazelwood Hazelwood Cemetery offers traditional in-ground burial for both casketed and cremated remains. All graves are single depth, with companions wishing to be laid to rest together being placed side-by-side. Up to six cremated remains are permitted on a full burial lot. Cremated remains placed require a Right of Interment and can only be placed with the permission of the family.

In-Ground Cremation Interment In-ground cremation lots can accommodate up to 2 urns per lot. Each set of cremated remains placed requires a Right of Interment.

Columbaria (Niche Walls) The Columbarium (niche wall) at Hazelwood is an above-ground, multi-level wall designed for the secure placement of cremated remains. Each niche can easily accommodate up to 2 standard size urns, but can also be purchased for a single urn.

Ossuary and Scatter Gardens The Ossuary is an in-ground receptacle in which cremated remains are co-mingled. A 3”x4” bronze memorial can be placed on the granite pillow located in an adjacent landscaped area. 

The Scatter Garden is a special landscaped area where cremated remains can be dispersed. The Cemetery Caretakers maintain the garden for the benefit of families represented there and Cemetery visitors. A 3”x4” bronze memorial can be placed on one of two granite memorial pillows located in the garden.

The community of Mt. Lehman is a historic farming community with strong historical roots in the Fraser Valley, with the Cemetery located in the 29000 block of Taylor Road.

History and Information 

• Originally a small rural Cemetery that appears to have been established in the 1880s, the date of the earliest visible headstones.
• Mt. Lehman is the smallest civic Cemetery with a site area of only 0.41 hectare (1 acre).
• Notable burials include the Lehman family: Katherine (1834-1884); Lucy Hannah (1861-1923); Thomas Henry (1863-1935); Thomas, son of Thomas and Lucy Lehman (1893-1894); and Carson (1873-1944).
• For  visitors, Mt. Lehman Cemetery gives the impression of an old country garden carved out of the second growth forest.
• The trees and benches within the burial area provide intimate sitting areas, and mature cypress trees mark the boundaries between the roadway and the cemetery itself. The site is bright and open, as a result of its exposure to both the south and east. In addition, the small wooden storage building evokes the period when much of the Abbotsford area was settled in the early twentieth century.

Google Street View

Currently Available at Mt. Lehman Mt. Lehman Cemetery offers traditional in-ground burials for both casketed and cremated remains. All burial graves are single depth, with companions wishing to be laid to rest together being placed side-by-side. Up to six cremated remains are permitted on a full burial lot. Cremated remains placed require a Right of Interment and can only be purchased with the permission of the family.

In-Ground Cremation Interment In-ground cremation lots can accommodate up to 2 urns per grave site. Each set of cremated remains placed requires a Right of Interment.

Columbaria (Niche Walls) The Columbarium (niche wall) is a permanent granite structure that has been designed for the secure placement of cremated remains above ground. Each niche may accommodate up to two urns. Mt. Lehman cemetery currently has a 72-niche domed hexagon columbarium. 

Scatter Gardens The Scatter Garden is a special landscaped area where friends and family of the deceased can scatter the cremains of their loved one. The Cemetery Caretakers maintain the garden to offer a beautiful final resting place for those whose ashes are spread there, and for family and friends to visit. A 3” x 4” bronze memorial can be placed on the granite memorial pillow located in the garden.

Musselwhite Cemetery is located in the 35000 block of Old Yale Road at the intersection of Marshall Road.

History and Information

• Musselwhite Cemetery was established in 1892 and has an area of 1.7 hectares (4.3 acres).
• The cemetery was named for John Musselwhite, who was a Royal Engineer. After leaving the Engineers, Musselwhite was granted land where the Whatcom Trail and Yale Road met. He proceeded to homestead and a short time later the area was named after him. A small village sprung up around his homestead, including a school, called Musselwhite Elementary School in 1909, but the only remaining evidence of this early settlement is this cemetery. The land was donated by farmer Jackson van Buren Means; his headstone transcription reads:
  • “In Loving Memory of Jackson Van Buren Means Born Misery (sic), U.S.A. 1839 Died at Abbotsford, Feb. 7, 1915 Aged 76 years.”
• The first person to be buried here was in 1892–Mrs. Annie Johnson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Musselwhite. The Musselwhites and their other daughter are among the many local pioneers who have been laid to rest in this historic cemetery.
• There are many beautiful headstones with decorative embellishments and funerary symbolisms that contribute to the historic significance and visual charm.
• This is a special site with enduring qualities that have continued to draw local families to it as a resting place for over a hundred years.

Google Street View

Currently Available at Musselwhite Musselwhite has limited in-ground burial options. Burial lots in Musselwhite can currently be purchased for at-need use only. Up to six cremated remains are permitted on a full burial lot. Cremated remains placed require a Right of Interment and can only be purchased with the permission of the family.

In-Ground Cremation Interment In-ground cremation lots can accommodate up to 2 urns per grave site. Each set of cremated remains placed requires a Right of Interment.

Our cemeteries are beautifully kept park spaces that honor former residents and loved ones. The City of Abbotsford Parks team diligently works to maintain these areas but would also welcome volunteer support to assist in the proper cleaning of marker headstones. All equipment and direction is provided for volunteers who are trained to assist in cleaning headstones and photographing cleaned markers.  If you would like to honor these spaces and the residents of our past in this way, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@abbotsford.ca or 604-557-7050.

We are grateful for the contributions of our Marker Maintenance volunteers and their assistance in building our photo resource.