Entry No. 31 — the Grand Junction file — filed under: cemetery
Crested Butte Cemetery
On the north edge of town along Gothic Road, Crested Butte's Victorian-era cemetery holds the evidence of a brutal frontier chapter. The left half of the grounds is dominated by the mass grave of 59 miners — many of them adolescents — killed in the Jokerville Mine explosion of January 24, 1884, one of the deadliest mining disasters in the American West. A hand-forged steel fence added in 2017 encloses the site, its cutouts depicting a pick and shovel. Surrounding plots bear Croatian, Italian, and Slavic surnames — Kochevar, Yaklich, Tezak — on markers ranging from weathered wooden crosses to a small marble lamb. The non-denominational Betty Spehar Chapel, built in the 1960s from salvaged elements of an 1890 church, anchors the grounds beneath the looming profile of Mt. Crested Butte.
The story
Pull off Gothic Road a quarter-mile north of downtown, and you’ll find that Crested Butte’s resort-town narrative stops abruptly at the fence line. The left side of this Victorian burial ground is a mass casualty site. On January 24, 1884, an explosion inside the Jokerville Mine killed 59 men and boys—many of them adolescent immigrants freshly arrived in the Elk Mountains. Roughly two-thirds of the disaster's victims were buried right here, marked by weathered wooden crosses, a small marble lamb, and stone markers carved with Croatian, Italian, and Slavic names like Kochevar, Yaklich, and Tezak.
In 2017, a local blacksmith enclosed the Jokerville mass grave with a hand-forged steel fence, cut through with negative-space silhouettes of pickaxes and shovels. It encircles a heavy roll-call stone detailing the miners' names and ages. Standing just past the grave rows is the Betty Spehar Chapel, a non-denominational refuge put together in the 1960s using salvaged timbers and architectural pieces from an 1890 town church, all dwarfed by the granite wall of Mt. Crested Butte behind it.
If you find yourself on Gothic Road late at night, keep your high beams on. Local legend around the valley insists a ghostly hitchhiker occasionally appears near the cemetery gates after dark, trying to flag down drivers for a ride down the pass toward Grand Junction. You didn't hear it from us, but don't be surprised if the shoulder isn't as empty as it looks.
What it's like
A quiet, solemn walk just two blocks off the main drag. Gothic Road is plowed year-round right up to the cemetery gates, making access easy even in winter—though if you step off the cleared lane between November and April, you'll sink straight into multi-foot snowpack over the unplowed graves. The Betty Spehar Chapel is locked outside of summer months. Cell reception drops heading into the valley, so download an offline map for the 2.5-to-3-hour drive from Grand Junction via US-50 and CO-135.
The move: Walk the left-side historic rows together and read the immigrant surnames and ages aloud. The 1884 mass grave, with its hand-forged fence and roll-call stone, makes for a quietly heavy shared moment — then grab coffee in town and decompress.
📍 Before you go Free and always open; no fees, no booking. Gothic Road is paved to this point year-round, so the cemetery itself is accessible even in winter — though expect deep snow off-path from November through April. The Betty Spehar Chapel is open summers only. Crested Butte is roughly 2.5–3 hours from Grand Junction via US-50 and CO-135 through Gunnison. Cell service is spotty; download an offline map. Combine with a walk through Crested Butte's historic district, which is two blocks away.
- 📍 Crested Butte
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: Gothic Road, approximately 0.25 miles north of downtown Crested Butte, CO 81224
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- Kochevar's Saloon & Gaming Hall — Grab a cold drink at this 1891 saloon built by the very same Kochevar family whose name is etched across the cemetery's historic immigrant plots.
- Dogwood Cocktail Cabin — Head to this candlelit 1891 miner bunkhouse to decompress over craft cocktails in a space rumor says is haunted by Jokerville disaster victims.
- Two-Story Outhouse — Walk back into town to see another rare piece of surviving 19th-century mining-era architecture hidden in an alley off Elk Avenue.
Good to know
Is there an admission fee to enter the Crested Butte Cemetery?
No, the cemetery is completely free and open to the public year-round without tickets or reservations.
When is the Betty Spehar Chapel open?
The chapel is only unlocked and open to visitors during the summer season.
How far is the cemetery from downtown Crested Butte?
It sits approximately 0.25 miles north of downtown on Gothic Road, about a two-block walk from the historic district.
Can you visit the cemetery in the winter?
Yes. Gothic Road is paved and plowed to the cemetery year-round, though snow off the plowed path is deep from November through April.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Atlas Obscura · Official site · townofcrestedbutte.colorado.gov · findagrave.com · Facebook
last checked: 2026-06-11