[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 79 (Thursday, May 21, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E786]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING YOUNTVILLE CEMETERY ASSOCIATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 21, 2015

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
Lee Hart and the Yountville Cemetery Association, caretakers for the 
George C. Yount Pioneer Cemetery in Napa County. The cemetery is named 
after George C. Yount, an early settler, who was also the first person 
to plant grapevines in the Napa Valley.
  Yount himself was buried in the cemetery in 1865 before it was 
purchased by his son-in-law to be preserved for future generations. The 
Yountville Cemetery Association was created in 1892, and took on the 
responsibility for its upkeep and preservation. By 1959, California 
recognized the cemetery as a state historical landmark. The cemetery is 
the final resting place for over one hundred of our nation's veterans 
and their families, and also includes historic Native American burial 
grounds.
  The association's all-volunteer staff continues to maintain the 
grounds year-round, along with responding to family requests and 
handling the few burials that still occur there each year. This year 
marks 150 years since Yount's passing and 50 years since Lee Hart 
joined the Association Board as its President.
  Mr. Hart is a local historian and authority on Yount's history and 
has been volunteering at the George C. Yount Cemetery and Ancient 
Burial Grounds for 50 years. In 1965, the organization lacked 
organization and volunteers. Hart decided to help create a new board 
with by-laws and fifty years later continues volunteering. Hart was 
just 25 years old when he lost his parents three months apart in 1965. 
His mother's family, long time Yountville residents were buried in the 
Yountville Cemetery. As such, Hart made the decision to bury his 
parents in Yountville.
  Mr. Speaker, it is fitting and proper that we honor Lee Hart and the 
Yountville Cemetery Association at this time. Their commitment to 
maintaining the George C. Yount Pioneer Cemetery has preserved an 
important part of Napa and California's history.

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