Fairmount Cemetery Association

The legion of volunteers who have been hauling their mowers and trimmers to the hills above Rockingham Road in Davenport now can count on the old cemetery getting the attention it needs.The Iowa Insurance Division, which administers state cemetery laws, last week was named in Iowa District Court in Polk County as the receiver of the long-suffering cemetery. After fall-outs among board members and claims of mismanagement over a several-year span, Fairmount's grounds were in near ruin.The Insurance Division now has signed a four-month contract with the superintendent of Pine Hill Cemetery, also in Davenport, to maintain and manage Fairmount.Carvel Morgan has decades of experience in cemetery work, and he said he already has determined that records appear to be in order. One complaint and concern among former board members and family members of those buried at Fairmount was that nearly a year's worth of burial records were missing."We found records in the office, and we haven't found that anything appears to be missing," Morgan said. "We have a lot of work ahead of us, but we're not finding anything wrong."People can start contacting us. We're answering the phone."In addition to plans to repair Fairmount's crematorium — once a primary moneymaker — Morgan said he will keep regular office hours and has a crew lined up to begin regular mowing of the grounds."We're starting with a 120-day contract to get things figured out, then hopefully continue on," he said.In announcing the receivership plans, Iowa Insurance Commissioner Doug Ommen said the state was pleased that Pine Hill staff responded to their call for help.“We want to thank Pine Hill Cemetery Association for stepping forward to assist us during the receivership,” Ommen said. “We know that cemeteries struggling with upkeep can cause anxiety for surviving families. We will be working to help get the cemetery’s operations back to normal as quickly as possible.”Julia Sird was among the surviving family members who were upset about the conditions at Fairmount. Her mother-in-law's grave was nearly unrecog... (Quad City Times)

The cemetery is now owned by the Iowa Insurance Division, a state department in charge of administering Iowa’s cemetery laws.The department was awarded ownership of the cemetery by a court order after the previous owners, a group of board directors, were unable to afford the expenses.“You struggle with income because you have to have burial income, plot and sale income…. if you become short on that then unfortunately the maintenance suffers first," says Cemetery Supervisor, Carvel Morgan.The state of Iowa is now working with Pine Hill Cemetery Association to keep Fairmount running smoothly.“We're in charge of the whole operation of the cemetery, taking the phone calls, taking the income from the sales (then) we report everything to the state,” says Morgan.Under the Cemetery Management Agreement, the state will pay $4,687.50 a week to Pine Hill Cemetery Association to maintain Fairmount cemetery.The agreement between the Pine Hill Cemetery Association and the state is up for renewal in November. (WQAD.com)