In the summer of 2011 the sump pump quit and Oak Mound Congregational Church, formerly called the Plymouth Church, ended up with 4 feet of water in the basement. Congregants, some of them 5th generation at this church, had been talking about closing the church after years of declining membership.
According to Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County and Find A Grave, on November 15, 1901, a meeting was held and at this meeting the cemetery was officially named, “Oak Mound Cemetery.” and the organization was named the “Oak Mound Cemetery Association.” This is the first time the name “Oak Mound” has appeared in the community's history. It would be interesting to know, but the meeting minutes do not disclose the author of the name Oak Mound.
On July 3, 1902, the cemetery association’s constitution and by-laws were adopted and signed by: Thomas Gee, Alfred Olson, Jacob Nelson, Charles Swanson, Martin Gee, John Fredrickson and Martin Anderson.
It is evident that there was a need for the cemetery as there were five burials the first year and eighteen burials the first six years the cemetery was operational. Ellen Maria Fredrickson was the cemetery’s first burial on January 20, 1903.
The most famous person buried here is Florence "Tree Tops" Klingensmith, a local woman who was the first woman in the area to earn a pilots license. There is a memorial plaque at her grave that reads;
FLORENCE (GUNDERSON) KLINGENSMITH, AVIATRIX
September 3, 1904 – September 4, 1933
This monument was erected in June, 2015 in memory of
Florence Edith (Gunderson) Klingensmith – “Tree Tops”
A native of Oak Mound, Minnesota. She became the first licensed female
Aviator (“aviatrix”) in Clay County, Minn. and the state of North Dakota in
June, 1929, and also that year became a charter member of the Ninety-Nines.
After winning the Ameila Earhart Award in 1932 and setting several world
records in women’s aviation, she died when her plane crashed near Chicago
while competing in the Frank Phillips Trophy Race on September 4, 1933.
She was interred in the Oak Mound Cemetery on September 4, 1933
In Lot 22, Grave 3. This monument was planned and dedicated by the
Oak Mound 4-H Club for their 2015 Community Pride Project.
The following individuals and organizations sponsored the construction and
dedication of this monument through labor and/or monetary contributions:
Oak Mound Church, Oak Mound Cemetery Association, Oak Mound School,
Marvin Corneliussen and the Clay County 4-H Federation.
Dedicated on June 14, 2015
The Oak Mound Cemetery Association was founded in 1901 under the leadership of Rev. Donald G. Colp. The land for the cemetery was donated by Louisa Newcombe and Martine and Jennie Fee in 1899. The cemetery constitution was adopted in 1902. The cemetery’s first burial was in 1903 when Ellen Maria Fredrickson was buried. The cemetery was enclosed with a white picket fence in 1905. The Oak Mound Cemetery Association is still active. Meeting have been held once a year since its founding.
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