History & Heritage

Joplin Pioneer Cemetery stands quietly at the edge of the Treasure Valley, overlooking the foothills that Idaho’s earliest settlers called home. Established in 1882, it is one of the oldest continuously active cemeteries in the state.

The Joplin Family

Before Idaho became a state in 1890, the Joplin family had already put down roots here. Isham Joplin was a farmer who came to Idaho while it was still a territory, settling at the base of the bench that overlooked the broad, flat valley floor. He and his family farmed the land and became a well-known name in the region — so well-known that a road, an elementary school, and this cemetery all bear the family name today.

In 1882, Isham Joplin set aside a portion of his land as a resting place for his family and for the neighbors and settlers of the surrounding area. He established the cemetery as a place to lay their dead overlooking the foothills. In 1895, he sold the cemetery under conditions he specified carefully — among them, famously, a prohibition on irrigation water. Joplin apparently insisted the land remain as he had always known it: dry, open, and close to the earth.

In the decades that followed, the resourceful community found a way around Joplin’s restriction — by declaring that water used on the grounds was rainwater. The cemetery has been cared for ever since.

“To the memory of the pioneer families who came to this valley in 1880. This sacred place is reserved and perpetuated as they found it. Dry and desolate, many were the hardships and privations endured. Dedicated to the spirit of the old timers and pioneers.”

— Memorial inscription at Joplin Cemetery

Who Rests Here

More than 1,000 people are buried at Joplin Pioneer Cemetery. Many are members of the pioneer families who built the Treasure Valley — names like Joplin, Driggs, Caldwell, and others that echo throughout Ada County’s history. Some of the graves date to the mid-1800s.

Many plots belong to children, a testament to the hardships of frontier life. Entire families are laid to rest side by side. As former groundskeeper Ann Grant once put it: “We don’t have any of the big hoity-toities here — we just got ordinary people.” That is precisely what makes it extraordinary.

The Cemetery District

Joplin Cemetery is operated by the Joplin Cemetery Maintenance District, a special taxing district of Ada County, Idaho. The district collects a modest property tax from properties within its boundary to fund grounds maintenance and operations. It has been collecting taxes since 1958.

The district is governed by an elected board that meets monthly. Day-to-day operations and grounds care are handled by the sexton, currently Lucas Littlefield.

The Cremain Wall

In the fall of 2002, a granite cremain wall was erected on the east end of Section E of the cemetery, providing an additional option for interment of cremated remains. It stands as one of the cemetery’s more recent additions.

Visit & Explore

Joplin Pioneer Cemetery is located at the intersection of Chinden Boulevard and Cloverdale Road in the Eagle/Meridian area. The grounds are open to the public daily from sunrise to sunset. Whether you’re tracing family history, paying respects to someone you’ve lost, or simply curious about Idaho’s past, you are welcome here.

To search for a specific burial, visit our Cemetery Map page, or browse records at Find a Grave.