Mormon Island is a relocation cemetery that was created in 1954 by the Army Corps of Engineers. It was used as a replacement for several cemeteries submerged below Folsom Lake when the Folsom Dam was built in 1955.

The cemetery holds the relocated remains of some of the earliest mining camps established after the 1848 discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill in Coloma, California. Remains from Mormon Island, Salmon Falls, Negro Hill, Condemned Bar, Carrollton Bar, McDowell’s Hill, Natural Dam and Doton’s Bar cemeteries, plus five individual graves were relocated to the new Mormon Island Cemetery. The earliest burial from any of these cemeteries could have been 1848, since several of these Mining Camps were first established in that year.

At five acres, Mormon Island (Mormon Island Relocation Cemetery) is one of the largest cemeteries in the County. Approximately one-half of this area is currently undeveloped; however, the area is being saved by the County for future cemetery relocations. This cemetery is currently inactive and only accepts remains for previously-purchased plots. There are 474 occupied plots recorded in the cemetery and 17 plots that have been purchased for future burials.

Time Period Represented: Gold Rush (1848-1855)

Seasons Open: Year-round