Flashback: Jan. 26

Land was purchased by Mr. & Mrs. Clark Brookins before a cemetery was established on that land in 1854 by the Oak Hill Cemetery Association. Some burials were done earlier than that.

The name of the cemetery was Brookfield Cemetery until 1905 when it was changed to Oak Hill Cemetery. There are between 150 to 200 people buried there. Originally, digging and filling graves cost $1.50. By 1877 it was raised to $2 with a lot of four graves costing $4.

Old record books show some names and addresses of what appear to be lot owners, but there is no attempt to identify owners with graves or lots.

Many military veterans are buried at Oak Hill. The most famous person is Nathan Hatch, who was a Revolutionary War soldier. He had come to Brookfield in the 1840s with his sons and died on Nov. 10, 1847 at 90 years old. Veterans representing every war through World War II are buried here.

The only exception is the Spanish-American War. There are a total of 15 Civil War veterans here. A later burial in 1978 was Ethel Mitchell who was a World War I veteran who lived beyond her 100th birthday.

A newspaper article from 1957 talks about how the cemetery had fallen into ruins helped along by vandals. Nobody had been maintaining the cemetery for many years, and it was basically forgotten. Since that time.

Many different groups have worked to bring the cemetery back to a beautiful place once again. Now the Oak Hill Cemetery Association is responsible for its maintenance. The cemetery is located on Brookfield Road just south of Capitol Drive in Brookfield.

This site features a Waukesha County historical marker erected and maintained by the Waukesha County Historical Society and Museum. Please visit our website at www.waukeshacountymuseum.org to see information on all of our historical markers. To find the markers, go to the bottom of the home page. For each marker you will find pictures, history and maps on how to find them.