Blagosklonnoye Cemetery Site – Buchanan District, Saskatchewan

The following is an overview of the Blagosklonnoye Doukhobor Cemetery Site located 8 miles south-east of Buchanan, Saskatchewan. Rural Municipality of Good Lake No. 274. Land location: NW 3-30-5 West of Second. Latitude: 51°34.505. Longitude: 102°38.355. Compiled October 2, 2004 by Jonathan J. Kalmakoff. 

View of the cemetery site from the north-west facing south-east. The bush which once marked

the site has recently been bulldozed and cleared.

Historical Background

Blagosklonnoye Cemetery was established in 1899 by the Doukhobors of Blagosklonnoye village near Good Spirit Lake. Following the abandonment of the village in 1912, the cemetery ceased to be actively used. Over the years, it became badly overgrown. In 2004, the cemetery site was destroyed and is now partially under cultivation. It is privately owned.

Layout

The cemetery was approximately half an acre in size and was enclosed by copper corner fence posts. There was dense scrub and brush throughout. The cemetery contained approximately 25 interments in one or more rows facing east-west. The graves were unmarked. Today, all that remains is a large pile of bulldozed trees where the cemetery once stood.  

Driving Directions

To access the cemetery site from Buchanan, travel south on Highway No. 47 for 5 3/4 miles (9.3 km). Then turn east on Secondary Route No. 651 for 5 miles (8 km). Turn south on the gravel road and continue for 3 1/4 mile (5.2 km). To access the cemetery site from Canora, travel west on Secondary Route No. 651 for 9 miles (14.5 km). Turn south on the gravel road and continue for 3 1/4 mile (5.2 km). The cemetery site is on the east side of the road, approximately 300 yards (274 m) from the road allowance. It is on private property and permission to access should be obtained by the owners.

Burials

There is no burial register, cemetery plot map, death certificates, grave markers or other records for Blagosklonnoye Cemetery. However, the following families resided in Blagosklonnoye village and may have members buried in Blagosklonnoye Cemetery: Chernenkoff, Filipoff, Konkin, Krukoff, Pereverzeff, Plotnikoff, Polovnikoff, Poohacheff, Sukareff, Verigin.

Notes

Special thanks to George Krukoff for assisting in locating the cemetery site. This is a work in progress. If readers have any comments, corrections or additions with respect to the Blagosklonnoye Cemetery site, please contact Jonathan J. Kalmakoff.