“Waking The Dead” adds new stop to tour

History will come to life during the 14th annual Waking the Dead Tours, featuring re-enactors telling the stories of some of the historical figures buried at Highland Cemetery.

The tour will feature storytellers at ten Highland Cemetery graves, each representing one of the historical figures, including Great Falls founder Paris Gibson, artist Charlie Russell, western star George Montgomery and other characters that have impacted the Great Falls area. .

One of the tour hosts, Dwight Smith, explains, “It’s important that we know the history of our city. it is important to know and have a living history. you know, you go out to a cemetery and there’s not a lot of conversation. But if you have storytellers who talk about these famous people and what they did for our city and kick it off, it’s definitely worth it.

Smith will also be a storyteller on the tour, portraying Medal of Honor recipient Captain John E. Moran.

A new stop on the tour has been added this year, Potter’s Field, an unmarked mass grave used in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for those who were unable to purchase a grave.

The Genealogical Society recently searched the archives to identify the thousands of unidentified people buried in the plot. They were able to find out who was buried there, when they died and what they died of.

Flags have been placed on the grounds to represent each person, and Highland Cemetery has plans for a future monument marking the area and naming those who were previously unidentified. The history of the potter’s field and some of those buried there will be told during the tour.

Tickets for the tour are $20 for the ride or $15 for the walking tour, and all proceeds benefit Great Falls Park and Recreation. Tickets can be purchased at the Kaufmans Menswear Center located at 411 Central Avenue in downtown Great Falls.

Visitation will be held at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 30 at Highland Cemetery located at 2010 33rd Avenue South.