Where Glarner descendants are buried in south-central Wisconsin
- Patrick
- Jan 17
- 7 min read
The emigration from the Canton of Glarus to Green County, Wisconsin in the mid-19th century produced a settlement pattern that is unusually traceable through cemeteries. Because many Glarner families remained connected through church membership, intermarriage, and landholding networks, burial places often mirror the same “map” genealogists reconstruct from church registers, deeds, and probate files. New Glarus became the best-known center of this Swiss colony, but descendants also appear in the cemeteries of nearby market towns (Monroe, Monticello) and, over time, in Madison as later generations moved for education, government work, and urban occupations.
What follows is a practical, genealogy-oriented overview of the principal cemeteries in the New Glarus–Monroe–Monticello–Madison area where descendants of Glarner emigrants are commonly found, with notes on why each cemetery matters and how to use it as evidence.
New Glarus
Swiss Reformed Church Pioneer Cemetery (New Glarus)
This is the earliest burial ground directly associated with the Swiss Reformed congregation in New Glarus. It is commonly described as the churchyard cemetery used during the first settlement generation. From 1845 to 1874, over 300 Swiss settlers were buried there. A narrative history oft he Pioneer Cemetery[1] explains the site’s development and later changes in how it was maintained and remembered.
Genealogy value: This is often where you find first-generation emigrants, early child mortality, and tightly clustered family burials that help reconstruct kinship networks. I have been able to identify 40 individuals in my database who are buried in this cemetery.
Swiss United Church of Christ Cemetery (New Glarus)
This is the larger, later cemetery associated with the Swiss church (the congregation now known as Swiss United Church of Christ). It is distinct from the earlier Pioneer Cemetery and is a major burial place for Swiss families across multiple generations. Find a Grave[2] identifies it specifically as the Swiss United Church of Christ Cemetery in New Glarus.
Genealogy value: This is typically where you see continuity into the late 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries—multi-generation plots, married-in spouses, and descendants who remained affiliated with the Swiss church community. Currently, I have been able to identify over 3,500 individuals in my database who are buried in this cemetery.
New Glarus Evangelical Cemetery (New Glarus Township)
The Evangelical Cemetery (often called the German Evangelical Cemetery) lies just west of New Glarus along Hwy 39, about half a mile from the main village. In 1884, local histories recorded three cemeteries in the township: the original Swiss Reformed pioneer site, a newer churchyard west of town, and this third one belonging to the German Evangelical society. It served the Evangelical congregation (distinct from the Swiss Reformed Church), reflecting the growing wave of German-speaking settlers with a different religious tradition.
The original colonists of New Glarus established the Swiss Reformed Church, which eventually joined the Evangelical and Reformed Synod. This denomination later merged with Congregational churches to form what is now the United Church of Christ. By contrast, the Evangelical congregation associated with the German Evangelical Cemetery was rooted in the Methodist tradition and should not be confused with the Evangelical and Reformed denomination. This distinction highlights both theological and cultural differences between the Swiss and German immigrant communities in the area.
Genealogy value: Especially useful for tracing families connected to Evangelical congregations and for identifying Swiss/Glarner descendants whose church affiliation differed from (or later diverged from) the Swiss Reformed tradition. I have been able to identify 150 individuals in my database who are buried in this cemetery.
New Glarus Historical Museum Cemetery (Swiss Historical Village Museum grounds)
This is best understood as a historic remnant/interpretive cemetery display tied to the Swiss Historical Village Museum. From 1845 to 1874, over three hundred Swiss settlers were buried in the churchyard of the Swiss Reformed Church in New Glarus, Wisconsin. Today only two grave markers remain on the grounds. Many of the grave markers were moved to the grounds of the New Glarus Historical Museum at 612 Seventh Avenue. A history of the Pioneer Cemetery and a listing of known burials can be found on the webiste oft he United Church of Christ[3]. The cemetery was also known as Alten Friedhof or Old Cemetery.
Genealogy value: It’s valuable as an interpretive resource—helping identify early names and memorial styles and prompting follow-up research—but it should be treated differently than an active cemetery because the museum context may involve preservation, relocation, or curated display rather than original grave placement. I have been able to identify 53 individuals in my database who are buried in this cemetery.
Dutch Hollow Cemetery (Sylvester Township, Green County)
One of the earliest needs of the Dutch Hollow community was a burial ground. On December 17, 1859, Jacob and Elsbeth Stauffacher sold one-half acre of land for five dollars to the Evangelical Cemetery Association for use as a cemetery (Sylvester Township). While various sources suggest a nearby log school once served the community, no record of a land transfer for such a building has been found. As a result, the cemetery stands as the anchor of the Dutch Hollow community—the first formally deeded property dedicated to communal use and the only one whose original purpose was intended to last “forever.” The name Dutch Hollow reflects both the ethnic heritage of the area’s early settlers and the local landscape. In 19th-century Wisconsin, “Dutch” was commonly used to describe German-speaking immigrants, including Swiss and southern German families, many of whom followed Reformed religious traditions influenced by Huldrych Zwingli. The term hollow refers to the shallow valley in which the settlement developed. Together, the name served as an informal but enduring identifier for a rural community defined by shared ethnicity, faith, and geography, long before formal civic institutions were established.
Genealogy value: Dutch Hollow Cemetery is a key genealogical resource because it is the earliest formally deeded communal property of the Dutch Hollow settlement (1859) and the only institution established with perpetual intent. As a stable geographic and legal anchor, it helps researchers connect individuals and families to place over multiple generations.The cemetery is especially useful for identifying early family groupings, confirming relationships through clustered burials, and preserving vital information that may predate or supplement civil records. Gravestone inscriptions, surnames, and burial patterns also reflect the shared Swiss and German-speaking heritage of the community, supporting research into kinship networks, migration patterns, and long-term continuity within the Dutch Hollow neighborhood.
Monroe
Greenwood Cemetery (Monroe)
As the county seat and commercial hub, Monroe drew Swiss (and Swiss-descended) families for business, trades, and later professional life—so Greenwood becomes a key “second node” for Glarner descendants even when their parents or grandparents were rooted in the New Glarus countryside.
Local sources and cemetery history references describe how Monroe’s burial arrangements changed over time, including the move from an older burying ground to what became Greenwood Cemetery. The Monroe Times notes that the village obtained property for the cemetery later called Greenwood and references reinterments from an older site.
Genealogy value: Find a Grave’s Greenwood Cemetery page provides a large index of memorials that many researchers use as an entry point (best treated as a finding aid, then verified with obituaries, church records, and civil registrations).
Monticello
Monticello and its surrounding townships sit within the wider Swiss-settled belt of Green County. For Glarner-descended families, these cemeteries often reflect farm neighborhoods, church affiliation, and kinship clusters.
Old Monticello Cemetery (Zwingli Cemetery)
Old Monticello Cemetery, also known as Zwingli Cemetery, reflects the expansion of Swiss-Reformed settlement beyond New Glarus into the Monticello area. Its alternate name directly references Ulrich Zwingli, underscoring the theological and cultural continuity that Glarner emigrants carried from Switzerland into southern Wisconsin. Many individuals buried here belong to families with origins in the Canton of Glarus or to closely connected Swiss immigrant networks.
Genealogy value: This cemetery is particularly useful for tracing branching family lines of Glarner emigrants who settled outside the New Glarus core but retained Swiss Reformed affiliation. Burial groupings often document second-generation farmers and tradespeople, helping genealogists follow family dispersal patterns while maintaining clear links to Swiss religious identity.
Washington Reformation Church Cemetery
The Washington Reformation Church Cemetery is closely associated with Swiss Reformed congregational life in the rural Monticello area and represents another node in the broader Swiss settlement landscape shaped by Glarner immigrants. The church name itself reflects Reformation heritage rooted in Switzerland, and the cemetery contains numerous burials of families who originated in or were directly descended from settlers from the Canton of Glarus.
Genealogy value: For genealogists, this cemetery is valuable for identifying rural Swiss Reformed family clusters and for documenting continuity of Swiss religious and cultural traditions into subsequent generations. It often preserves burials of farming families who remained tied to land and church, providing evidence that complements New Glarus church records and helps distinguish Monticello-area Swiss lines from those who relocated to towns or cities.
Madison
By the late 19th and 20th centuries, it became common for descendants of Green County Swiss settlers to appear in Madison—through the University, state government, and the wider Dane County economy. The result is that family lines that begin in New Glarus-area churchyards often “end up” in Madison cemeteries.
Forest Hill Cemetery (Madison)
Forest Hill is one of Madison’s principal historic cemeteries and a common burial place for people whose lives were tied to the city’s institutions. Background histories describe its origins in the mid-19th century as Madison developed formal cemetery grounds and later expanded them.
For genealogical work, Forest Hill is valuable not only for monuments but also because it has attracted sustained historical documentation. Historic Madison, Inc. maintains a biographical guide[4] connected to the cemetery that can provide context for prominent individuals and, by extension, their families.
For readers who wish to explore further:
Over the course of this research, I have compiled a 130-page cemetery list containing thousands of documented burials of emigrants from the Canton of Glarus and their descendants, drawn from cemeteries across south-central Wisconsin and beyond. Those interested in obtaining a copy may do so by making a CHF 20 contribution via the donate button, which helps support continued research, documentation, and preservation of this shared Swiss-American heritage. Your support is sincerely appreciated.
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[1] Freitag Duane, Pioneer Cemetery of New Glarus, 2003