Allouez's Historic Cemeteries

People who enjoy learning the history of an area have some reliable sources they can depend upon. Libraries are excellent resources and staff members are often eager to talk about their community’s history. Historical societies exist to provide information to history buffs and they welcome inquiries. Local historians have found that some of the best repositories of local history are cemeteries. Allouez is fortunate to have two cemeteries rich in history within the village limits.

The oldest one is Allouez Catholic Cemetery.  It is the final resting place for some of the most well known names in local history. Some of them, such as Dousman and Desnoyers, are familiar street names to west Green Bay residents. Others, like Lambeau and Canadeo, are instantly recognizable to long time Green Bay Packers fans. The names on other headstones may not be so recognizable even though their accomplishments are quite noteworthy.

One example is Denis John Francis Murphy. Born in Cork, Ireland, in 1830, Murphy emigrated to northeast Wisconsin and worked a farm in Glenmore. He enlisted in Company F, 14th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War and was awarded the Civil War Medal of Honor in 1892 for his bravery during the Battle of Corinth, Mississippi. Murphy returned to the area after the war, but was no longer able to work his farm. He and his wife moved into Green Bay where he died in 1901.

An aspect of the cemetery’s history that makes it especially interesting is that some of the deceased are not in their original burial location. Up to the early 1800’s, Catholics from the area were buried in a cemetery at the intersection of Washington and Adams Streets in Green Bay. Known as La Baye Cemetery, it was located where Green Bay Fire Station Number One is now. The city grew in population and by 1835 it needed to close the cemetery and relocate the graves. Allouez Catholic Cemetery had opened in 1822 and accepted a number of these displaced graves.

Woodlawn Cemetery, opened in 1856, is located north of the Allouez Catholic Cemetery near the village’s border with Green Bay. This cemetery is also noteworthy for people buried within its shady confines. The 1997 movie Titanic brought some attention to Woodlawn because one of the victims of the famous shipwreck is buried there. Dr. William Edward Minahan boarded the ill-fated ocean liner in Queenstown with his wife Lillian and sister Daisy. Lillian and Daisy heard Dr. Minahan’s last words, “be brave”, and lived to tell the story of the tragic event. Dr. Minahan’s crypt is on the far west side of the cemetery. There is a path leading to a few stairs that allow visitors to see the front of the crypt, which overlooks Riverside Drive.

Otto Kaap’s mausoleum is located just southeast of Dr. Minahan’s crypt. Otto was born in Manistee County, Michigan in 1887. He moved to Green Bay and in 1907 he was a bank teller by day and a drummer by night. In order to convince another musician to move from Oshkosh, he helped him open a candy store in downtown Green Bay. The gentleman’s business failed and Otto took it over in an attempt to save his investment. He made candy after his vaudeville performances so it would be fresh in the morning. As the business became more and more successful, he added an ice cream parlor, tea room and restaurant. Beloved by many, his establishments moved to various locations during the last century, the final location being razed when downtown Green Bay was renovated in the 1970’s. You can still taste chocolate made using Otto Kaap’s recipes at Kaap’s Old World Chocolates on South Webster Avenue.

The Brown County Historical Society has taken note of the history contained in these two cemeteries and has instituted Cemetery Walks to make their histories come alive. Society members select several people from each cemetery and research their stories. Local actors dress in period clothing and tell their stories while standing next to the headstone of their character. Last year’s walks featured John Dousman and Bishop Aloysius Wycislo at the Allouez Catholic Cemetery.  Woodlawn Cemetery walks have told the stories of  members of the Martin Morgan family and Daniel Whitney, known as the Father of Green Bay. A recent walk there featured the brewer August Hochgreve.  The events are titled, “If Tombstones Could Talk”, and will be held again late this summer.

History is all around us in the village of Allouez. It may seem a bit strange, but it comes alive in our cemeteries.