Oakwood Cemetery
Hwy E and Highway 31 (Green Bay Road), Village of Somers, Kenosha County
Information
Oakwood Cemetery consists of five acres which are developed with headstones and mature trees. The Cemetery Association also owns an additional five adjoining acres to the south which is currently being used as farmland.
Oakwood Cemetery is administered by the Oakwood Cemetery Association board of directors. Anyone seeking information about Oakwood Cemetery can contact Mr. Kent Mayes, Chairman, at 262-412-8629. Cemetery lots are currently $900.00; however, prices may change without notice.
History
In the early 1840’s, William “Billy” Smith owned all four parcels on the corners of Green Bay Road (Highway 31) and Highway E. He donated three acres on the southeast corner to a newly formed Oakwood Cemetery Association. According to an article in Kenosha News dated July 14, 1982, a prominent Somers resident, Leveret Leet, stated “history records that John Ozanne, son of the Rev. James Ozanne, a Methodist minister, farmer, and miller from the Island of Guernsey, was the first to be buried in the new cemetery in 1842.”
For those of you who are working on family genealogy and pioneer family research information for Oakwood Cemetery in Somers, Wisconsin, you may find the Oakwood Cemetery website an excellent resource.
B’Nai Zedek Cemetery
Hwy 32/Sheridan Road, across from Carthage College, Village of Somers, Kenosha County
Information
B’Nai Zedek Cemetery is currently managed by an independent voluntary Cemetery Board.
History
In the 1880’s Jacob Stern, a merchant, was one of the first Jewish settlers to arrive in Kenosha. Others followed, including Rabbi Louis Lapkovsky who, in 1904, became the first Rabbi of Congregation B’nai Zedek. In 1910 the need for a permanent synagogue became evident and the first donation to the building fund was $500.00, donated by Mr. Zalman Simmons, owner of the former Kenosha located Simmons Mattress Company. The congregation established B’Nai Zedek Cemetery in the mid 1920’s.
(Source: Congregation B’nei Tzedek Chabad)
St. Casimir Polish Cemetery
St. Casimir Cemetery, Village of Somers, Kenosha County
Information
This Catholic Cemetery, formerly serving the mostly Polish members of the now closed St. Casimir Parish, 1009 Washington Avenue, Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Cemetery is now merged with St. George Cemetery, 2909 Sheridan Road, Kenosha, Wisconsin. Both cemeteries are administered by St. Elizabeth Catholic Parish, 4816 7th Avenue, Kenosha, Wis.
History
“Deeds filed in the office of the Register of Deeds transferred ten acres of the farm of Emil F. Falk in the Town of Somers to St. Casimir’s Church congregation. The purchase price was $1,250. The property is to be used as a cemetery for the burial of Polish people and it is the plan of the Trustees of the Congregation to have it surveyed and platted within the next few weeks. It will be ready for use by early summer. Since the organization of the Polish Catholic church in the city of Kenosha, the members of the congregation have had no regular place for the burial of their dead.”
(Source: Racine Journal, March 9, 1906)