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The History of Chippiannock Cemetery

There is no other cemetery quite like Chippiannock. Unless you're familiar with the Quad-Cities, you may never have heard of Chipiannock Cemetery . Located on a rolling hillside in Rock Island , it sits on the Manitou Ridge.overlooking the Mississippi and Rock River . This is where the Native Americans of the Sauk and Mesquakie nations established Saukenuk along the north shore of the Rock River in 1730.

Its name Chippiannock, meaning “Village of the dead” was suggested by Susan Lewis Goldsmith, mother of Bailey Davenport and honors the local Indian culture of several hundred years ago. Established In 1855 local leaders felt there was a need for a formal cemetery. Before that white settlers had been buried in Bailey Davenport’s pasture. Among Chippiannock founders were Holmes Hakes,S.S. guyer,Ben Harper, William L. Lee, Bailey Davenport and Henry Potter

Dr. and Mrs. Ebeneezer Lathrop donated the first 62 acres. Later on 38 more acres were added. It was designed by Mr. Hotchkiss who had designed a garden cemeteries in Long Island New York and was designing Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis .

In May of 1994 it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its blend of architectural landscape, art and architecture. There are four miles of winding roads throughout Chippiannock.

Greg Vogel is the caretaker and manager of the cemetery and took over for his father. He has lived next to the cemetery all of his life and is a wonderful wealth of knowledge of the stories Chippiannock holds. He and his wife are very helpful to visitors.

Describing Chippiannock has always been a challenge for writers because it is far removed from a traditional cemetery. No subdivision-like layout here, with rows of perfectly spaced plots, with clone-like headstones. Chippiannock is ...well... different.

A full-size anchor rests on the grave of a ship's captain. Huge metallic balls, stone trees, an eternal baby's casket, boulders, ships wheels and anvils. These and more grace the thousands of graves on the rolling hillside. Chippiannock does not make you think of the deaths of those buried there but rather of their lives. You can trace the history of the territory and even the country on the headstones of the many men buried there. Rivermen, statesmen, adventurers and pioneers. Many headstones have a story to tell. Yes, there is no other cemetery quite like Chippiannock.

Chippiannock Cemetery Association

2901 12th Street Rock Island, Il. 61201-6622

Phone 309-788-6622

email info@chippiannock

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Illinois Ancestors