A single headstone remains in the “Paupers Gravesite” area of the Downieville Cemetery
DOWNIEVILLE — A thank you to those who participated in this year’s annual Cleanup Day, which was performed on Saturday, May 18th: Cherry Simi, Mike Galan, Karen Galan, Frank Lang, Bette Jo Lang, Greg Johnson, Connie Johnson, Stephanie Aufdermaur, Scott Steinwert, Laurie Halliday, Sonya Meline, Dave Crosby, Sandy Young, Nick Martinelli, Robert Baker, Robert Hall, Diane Wharff, Leslie Baker, Michael Taylor, Teresa Taylor, and Sequoia Fadden. Also, a public thank you to Cold Rush for providing the coffee service and Autumn’s Butter Me Up Bakery at Sabrina’s for providing the delicious bakery items.
The group gathered at 8 a.m. at Gold Rush Park for coffee and bakery items before doing their good deeds for the day, with suggested cleanup tasks posted on post-its on the visitor’s center window. This year, a new project was tackled with the reacquired Paupers Gravesite just West of the Downieville Cemetery. The gravesite area was cleared of brush, trees, and weeds. The one reported remaining headstone within the gravesite for John Edward Luce (1880-1934) was uncovered and located during the effort.
The Cleanup Day is an annual event organized by DIG (Downieville Improvement Group). It is scheduled a week or two before Memorial Day weekend to assist with preparing the town for the peak tourist season. This was the seventh year that DIG has organized and held a Cleanup Day.