The cemetery was officially organized on November 1, 1860, after a town meeting[a] in October of that year designated a sum of $1,500 (approx.

$41,000 2016 USD)[1] for the purchase of land; contributions for this land came from the Holyoke Water Power Company as well as local mills, with the acquisitions presided over by Jones S. Davis, engineer of Lyman Mills.

[2] The cemetery acquisitions were completed and dedicated on June 22, 1862 with speeches by Amherst professor J.G.

[3] The cemetery, built during a time of great interest in landscape architecture, contains a deliberately chosen layout of ornamental trees and shrubs.

Serving as a common burial ground for all citizens, it also contains a potter's field for indigents.