The last time a grave was sold at Mountain View Cemetery was March 27, 1986.

But that’s going to change as soon as Mountain View, owned by the city since 1886, completes the legal process to reclaim up to 1,100 unused graves.

Mountain View manager Glen Hodges said staff are working to reclaim 220 graves in three old areas of the cemetery, but will expand their efforts over the next several years.

“Some of them might get claimed by families,” said Hodges. “And according to regulations we have to keep some aside so that if a family member does come forward they’ll receive a grave of equal or greater value.”

The reclamation is being completed under the provincial government’s Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Regulations. Hodges said each grave has to be physically inspected to see if it’s suitable to resell and not encumbered by large monuments or trees. The graves must also be at least 50 years old, but Hodges notes the spots to be sold are between 70 and 100 years old and empty.

“We’re not going to sell any graves with anyone in them,” said Hodges. “I don’t want any family members worrying about that.”

The problem in reaching potential family members regarding the graves is that record keeping a century ago left a lot to be desired.

“The record we have might say William F. Brown with no address, or William F. Brown from 127 Haro St., but that house no longer exists,” said Hodges. “We have sent notices out to every single address we have on record and they’ve all come back return to sender.”

Family members who can prove their ancestors purchased a grave could potentially sell it at a hefty profit. Hodges was unsure what the graves sold for initially, but said their resale potential is huge at Vancouver’s only cemetery. He noted comparable grave sites at cemeteries in neighbouring municipalities start at $10,000. But the scarcity of the Mountain View spots and their location in some of the oldest parts of the cemetery means their price will likely far exceed that amount, he said.

“The demand is much greater than the supply,” said Hodges. “But that will be up to council to decide and that should be done by September or October.”

He said money the cemetery is expected to make from the sale of the graves will help Mountain View become less dependent on tax money from the city.

“Mountain View has been heavily subsidized by rate payers and many of these graves were sold well below value,” said Hodges. “It will help a lot if we can sell these graves at optimal maximum value.”

Hodges said it was common a century ago for families to purchase plots including four, eight or even 12 graves. Over time, he said, families moved and no longer have a connection to Vancouver so the graves remain empty. In other cases, word of the grave purchase wasn’t passed along to future generations.

Hodges noted some old Vancouver names are included on the list of graves purchased before 1940, including Mrs. Harry Stan Scofield, James Albert MacDonald and James Rothwell.

sthomas@vancourier.com