Cemeteries

Established in 1910, Lakeview Cemetery is the City’s active cemetery. The 14-acre property rests at the foot of Munson Mountain, between wineries and the Kettle Valley Rail Trail.

Lakeview features open lawn with avenues of maple and western red cedar trees, with spectacular views across Okanagan Lake to the mountains beyond.

Columbarium Gardens, located in the southeast corner, feature a reflection pool, a water wall and lush landscaping.

Lakeview Cemetery Brochure

Lakeview Cemetery
775 Lower Bench Road, Penticton, B.C.
Lakeview Cemetery is located on the east bench of Penticton, overlooking Okanagan Lake

Open to visitors: Every day from 7 a.m. until desk (one hour after sunset)
Caretaker’s hours: Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. from April 1 to Oct. 31

Locating a Loved One

Please review the Deceased Report to find the person’s name and grave location, then refer to the cemetery map and master map, or contact the funeral home and the cemetery sales office at 250-490-2477 for more details on grave location.

Lakeview welcomes cut flowers, wreaths and floral offerings on graves with one flower arrangement per plot. Once the condition has deteriorated, the flowers will be removed.  Artificial flowers can be placed from Nov. 1 to March 31.

Please note that between April 1 and Oct. 31, only fresh flowers are permitted. 

The only items allowed on concrete tablets are: 

• Two solar-powered lanterns, and
• Fresh flowers in the supplied vase

The Caretaker will remove any personal possessions (pictures, frames, boxes, shells, toys, etc.) on any graves, concrete tablets and columbarium niche vases, these items will be set aside until April 30, after which time they will be discarded.

Visit our Products, Services & Rates page for the full details. 

Efforts to open this civic cemetery began in 1905 when the Anglican Church of St Saviour’s (now known as Fairview Cemetery) announced that it no longer had room for burials of citizens who were not members of its congregation.

The first five acres of the site was acquired from the Southern Okanagan Land Company in 1910. The first burial was of a man killed in a logging accident and later burials included soldiers from the First and Second World Wars, in addition to prominent citizens like architect and Mayor Robert Lyon and Dr. McGregor.

Chief engineer of the Kettle Valley Railway, Andrew McCulloch, and his secretary A. A. Swift are buried in the Old Section, which is appropriate given that the route of the former railway (now the KVR Trail) runs alongside the cemetery.

City’s original cemetery and the former site of St. Saviour’s Church. Some of the earliest members of the community are buried here and, although no longer accepting internments, it’s a place of historical and cultural significance.

History

The cemetery’s origins date back to 1892, when the original Anglican Church of St. Saviour’s was established by Tom Ellis and his family, who were the first non-native settlers to the area.

The original church was expanded in 1906 to accommodate a larger congregation as migrants continued to settle in Penticton. The Ellis Memorial Chapel still stands at St. Saviour's, and is Penticton's oldest building.

In 1964, the City of Penticton assumed ownership of Fairview Cemetery as an “historical site.” Today, the footprint of the church outlined in granite is the only reminder that St. Saviour’s Church once stood on this site.

Fairview Cemetery contains the graves of many of the early residents in Penticton. These include:

• Thomas Ellis Jr., son of the first non-native settler
• William Zimmerman, Penticton’s first murder victim
• Alfred Wade, the first reeve (mayor)
• Geoffrey Aston, Penticton police officer, killed in 1912
• Amos Barnes, the second hotel owner in Penticton
• 6-year-old Minnie Zhuelkie, the first person to be interred at the cemetery

Fairview Cemetery
1136 Fairview Road, Penticton, B.C.
Every day from 7 a.m. to one hour after sunset

Visit our Cemeteries Products and Services page for options and pricing information. 

See this useful list of resources including where to access grief support, financial and legal assistance, victim services and more.

Are you interested in making a donation to improve a Penticton park or public space? Whether it’s in memory of a loved one or on behalf of an organization or service group, we offer many different options throughout a range of locations.

This may include dedicated park benches, picnic tables, bike racks, trees, dog pet stands or donating toward other park improvement projects. Find out more on our Parks Donations page.

Lakeview Cemetery is owned and operated by the City of Penticton and is part of the Cemetery Management Bylaw.

The bylaw provides a set of guidelines in relation to the services and maintenance operated by the municipality.  The bylaw provided is for information purposes only.

• Memorial Specifications: Refer to Schedule 'A' - Memorial Specifications (Pg. 31)
• Interment Specification: Refer to Schedule 'B' - Interment Specifications (Pg. 39)
• Grave Adornment: Refer to Section 5.4 - 5.9 (Pg. 8-9)

Cemetery Maintenance Inquiries
City of Penticton Parks Department
Phone: 250-490-2500
Email: parks@penticton.ca

Cemetery Sales Office
City Hall - 2nd Floor - 171 Main Street, Penticton, B.C., V2A 5A9
Phone: 250-490-2477
Email: cemetery@penticton.ca
Hours: Monday to Friday, by appointment. Closed Saturday, Sunday and statutory holidays