12 Colorado cemeteries you must visit this spooky season

Whether you're celebrating Halloween, marking All Saints Day or honoring Día de los Muertos, late October and early November are the best time to visit a cemetery. But the spooky season also provides a great opportunity to explore the state's rich history by visiting memorials dedicated to those who have gone before us. From a walk in the arboretum to graves on a hill near Boulder to the resting place of beloved pets, here's a short list of interesting cemeteries that are sure to give you goosebumps and an interest in Colorado's past.

A little tip: don't be offended if a cemetery worker stops and asks what you are doing. Grave vandalism is always a concern, especially in older cemeteries where headstones often stand upright and are easy targets. The staff is simply protecting the history of the cemetery for future generations. While you're there, pick a few weeds and leave some good karma behind.

Home to some of the state's most famous (and infamous) former residents, this 133-year-old cemetery is perhaps the most recognizable cemetery in Colorado. Modeled after Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston, the 280-acre Fairmount is more like a park than a cemetery. Not only is it considered Colorado's largest and most diverse arboretum (thanks to Reinhard Schütze, the state's first landscape architect), but it also boasts one of the largest collections of old garden roses in the country, meaning varieties that have been around since 1867. For paranormal enthusiasts, Fairmount has a reputation for being seriously haunted and has long hosted ghost hunters from across America. It's also a great neighborhood for budding historians, where you can trace the roots of some of the state's most interesting residents. Hundreds of men and women who have shaped Colorado are buried here, including governors, U.S. Senators, mayors, architects, writers, and scientists. While her profession may have been considered less dignified than, say, a congresswoman, Mattie Silks (buried here as Martha Reedy) was known as one of the West's leading madams and the "queen of Denver's red-light district" in the late 1870s. If you have time, visit the huge Fairmount Mausoleum - at the east end of the cemetery - where members of the Bottcher and Bonfils families rest, along with one of Colorado's largest stained glass collections. 430 S. Quebec St., Denver

Riverside Cemetery

Photo by Robert Sanchez

Denver's oldest surviving cemetery may be the best. The 147-year-old Riverside Cemetery, perched atop a flooded stretch of land along the South Platte River, is the resting place of perhaps the most interesting collection of Coloradans. Among the most famous is Silas Soule, an abolitionist and U.S. Army officer who testified against U.S. Army Col. John Chivington for his involvement in the Sand Creek Massacre of 1864. Saul was killed in Denver the following year - possibly in retaliation - and is buried in the Riverside Veterans Section, located along the edge of the cemetery adjacent to Brighton Boulevard. Buried next to Saul is Walter Springs, a black soccer player and boxer from Regis College (now University) who served in the U.S. Army during World War II and was shot and killed by a white military police officer in Texas in what was likely a racially motivated attack. One of Riverside's hidden gems is the grave of Oliver "Ghost" Marcellus, a former Negro League player of the 1920s who was previously considered for inclusion in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. He died penniless in Denver in 1949 and was buried in an unmarked grave for some time. 5201 Brighton Blvd, Denver.

A victim of vandalism and neglect, this modest prairie cemetery near an apartment complex in Arvada may be the best example of a pioneer era burial ground. The Spartan Cemetery, formerly named Osborne Hill, was once the final resting place for residents of the growing town that grew here after the discovery of gold in the 1850s. The earliest of a dozen headstones dates to 1869 (three children from the same family who died a few weeks apart), and there are likely many more pioneer families in unmarked graves scattered across the 2.8-acre site. In fact, over a decade ago, the University of Denver surveyed the area and found over 30 unmarked burials. So if you visit the site, be cautious and respectful. 14601-14627 W. 62nd Ave., Arvada

Columbia Cemetery

Columbia Cemetery was purchased in 1858 by prospectors who came to what is now Boulder and is one of the longest-lived cemeteries in the state. Located on the west side of town, the 10.5-acre cemetery features more than 3,000 headstones, manicured walkways and a babbling brook. Among the most interesting burials are those of "Rocky Joe" Sturtevant, an early settler who became a famous photographer, and Mary Rippon, the first female professor at the University of Colorado, who also may have been the first female professor at a public university in America. 1201 Ninth Street, Boulder.

Gold Hill Cemetery

This stretch of mountainous landscape in the hills above Boulder is an ideal vacation spot for those who want to experience a highland cemetery in relatively convenient proximity to Denver. Nearly 160 years old (and still in use today), Gold Hill Cemetery is the final resting place of approximately 300 people and includes a very small, partially wooded walkway. Worn marble headstones stick out among wild grass, pine trees, small boulders and fallen tree limbs. Like many other old cemeteries, there are unmarked graves here. Stick to the trails. 1170 Dixon Road, Boulder

Golden Hill Cemetery

Not to be confused with a cemetery in Boulder with a similar name ( see above ) . Golden Hill Cemetery opened in 1908 and is one of Colorado's premier Jewish cemeteries. About 200 headstones, many hidden by brush and weeds, dot the hillside near West Colfax Avenue. These monuments are separate from the main cemetery because many of those buried here were Jewish immigrants who died of tuberculosis at one of two regional Jewish sanitariums. (The remains of the former Hebrew Hospital Aid Society still stand as part of the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, located behind Casa Bonita.) The most famous headstone on Golden Hill belongs to Charles Spivak, a physician who helped found a tuberculosis sanitarium and died in 1927. Spivak also edited the Denver Jewish News newspaper and helped compile a Yiddish-English dictionary popular in his day. According to the will, Spivak's skeleton was sent to Hadassah Medical Center in Israel and the rest of his remains were buried next to his former patients. Golden Hill is a non-profit organization, so you can leave a donation. 12000 W. Colfax Ave., Lakewood

Not long ago, an 84-year-old burial ground in Commerce City was the subject of constant complaints from neighbors who said the place had become too creepy. The previous owners closed the site before selling it, causing it to fall into disrepair. A father and son duo bought the land in 2015 and began the first stages of a massive renovation. Like almost every cemetery, there is at least one interesting burial here. In this case, it's Sgt. Geronimo - believed to be half wolf, half German Shepherd - who served in the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment during World War II and even jumped from airplanes into combat zones. He even had his own parachute. Now that's a good boy. 5721 E. 72nd Ave, Commerce City.

All that's left

Five more cemeteries worth spending time at:

Evergreen Cemetery (Leadville): At 10,000 feet, this cemetery is worth the two-hour drive from Denver. There are graves here dating back to the boom and bust times of silver mining.
Fort Logan National Cemetery (Denver): Named in honor of Union General John A. Logan, this 214-acre cemetery has more than 120,000 graves, including three Medal of Honor recipients.
Littleton Cemetery (Littleton): Burials in this non-profit cemetery began after the Civil War, and include recognized cannibal Alferd Packer.
Mount Olivet Cemetery (Wheat Ridge): This Catholic cemetery, operated by the Archdiocese of Denver, contains the graves of baby Doe Tabor, Apollo 13 astronaut Jack Swigert, and William Gilpin, the first governor of the Colorado Territory.
Mountain View Memorial Park (Boulder): Pay tribute to Rashaan Salaam, University of Colorado soccer star and 1993 Heisman Trophy winner.