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MOUNTAIN VIEW CEMETERY - SOMENOS
Distrist of North Cowichan
MASONIC INTERMENTS
Although this cemetery is often referred to in older records as the United Church Cemetery, Somenos, the present Mountain View Cemetery is a municipal facility operated by the District of North Cowichan and is located at the north-east corner of the intersection of Somenos Road and Drinkwater Road, North Cowichan.
The Vancouver Island Masonic History Project is currently aware of 28 Freemasons interred in Mountain View Cemetery, Somenos in the District of North Cowichan. All except one were members of Temple Lodge, No. 33 and include two former Mayors of Duncan and a Reeve of North Cowichan. The names appear in the list below:
Here is a list of the Freemasons we know to be interred in Mountain View Cemetery:
- Ashley, Alpheus Armot - died 1960
- Campbell, Joseph McLeod - died 1961. Reeve of North Cowichan
- Castley, John Henry - died 1956
- Harris, George Almon - died 1945
- Gidley, Stanley William - died 1952
- Green, Alfred Edward - died 1968 (note: Alfred Green's son, M.W.B. Claude Green (Past Grand Master) is buried in St. Mary's Somenos Anglican cemetery, a short drive south on Somenos Road
- Grosskleg, William - died 1952
- Kerrone, Joseph - died 1965
- Kennett, Richard "Bucky" - died 1987 (note: founder of Bucky's Sport Shop in downtown Duncan, B.C.)
- Kier, William Herman Cecil - died 1966
- Kyle, William Albert - died 1951 (also see 161-165 Station Street and 971 Government Street)
- LeQuesne, James Farley - died
- Lewis, Charles Walter - died 1959. Kamloops Lodge, No. 10, Kamloops, B.C.
- Livingston, John - died 1937
- Lukaitis, Martin - died 2011. Served on Duncan City Council 1967-2002
- Mains, Charles - died
- Mowat, George Frederick - died 1941
- Page, Arthur - died 1928
- Pitt, Thomas - died 1937. Mayor of Duncan
- Plaskett, David - died 1952
- Plaskett, Eli Hodgson - died 1960
- Pollock, James Dickson - died
- Smythe, Ormond Towers - died . Mayor of Duncan
- Stevenson, Archibald - died 1984
- Truesdale, Lewis - died 1915. Charter Member of Temple Lodge, No.33
- Van Norman, Frederick -
- Van Norman, Isaac Newton - died 1920
- Van Norman, Thomas
We have also discovered the following members of the Order of the Eastern Star interred in Mountain View Cemetery:
- Stevenson, Sara Elizabeth - died 1985
There are some other graves in Mountain View Cemetery which may be of interest to visitors.
One is the grave of B.C.'s seventh Premier, the Hon. William Smithe ((1842-1887), shown in Fig. 2.
Smithe was not a Freemason but his leading political opponent, the Hon. George Anthony Walkem (Premier of B.C. between February 1874 - January 1876 and again between 1878 - June 1882) was a member of Kamloops Lodge, No.10 and King Solomon's Lodge, No 22 in Toronto, Ontario. The Hon. George Anthony Walkem is buried in Ross Bay Cemetery in Victoria.
The GPS location of the Hon. William Smithe's grave is: N 48° 48.197' W 123° 44.176'
During research or travels we often come across Interesting Connections to Masons and Freemasonry. Our Interesting Connections Page has some interesting Masonic connections uncovered by members of Temple Lodge, No.33, like Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, shown at left.......................
Masonic musicians and composers range from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to Howlin' Wolf. Writers include Rudyard Kipling. For music fans and book lovers, here are some links to the works of Masonic musicians, composers and writers..............