In the early 1880s, Moses J. Church donated 80 acres of land along Belmont Avenue for the establishment of cemeteries.[2][3] He named the combined plot Mountain View Cemetery but subdivided it and allocated it to a number of groups, such as Catholic, Seventh-Day Adventist, Episcopal, Christian, Masonic, Odd Fellows and many others.[3] No fences were installed between the areas.
John S. Eastwood performed the initial survey the property in 1888 as Fresno's City Engineer at the time.[4] The 10-acres of donated land earmarked for the Armenian community became
Ararat Cemetery.[5]
Upkeep for the cemetery was assigned to the local Odd Fellows lodge.[6] In 1910, citizens became concerned with plant overgrowth and lack of a map showing ownership of individual plots at the cemetery. They formed the "Mountain View Cemetery Improvement Association" and took over some management duties.[6]
Bertrand W. Gearhart (1890-1955), lawyer and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives for California's 9th congressional district.[7]
Thomas Edwin Hughes (1830-1919), real estate developer and investor who contributed to the initial development of Fresno.
John Samuel Eastwood (1857–1924), dam engineer and pioneer of hydroelectric power production.[4]
Alma Rubens (1897–1931), film actress and stage performer.
Moses J. Church (1819-1900), known for building hundreds of miles of canals in the Fresno area, enabling irrigated agriculture using water from the
Kings River.
Fulton G. Berry (1832-1910), businessman and namesake for Fresno's
Fulton Mall.