City of Poteau

Parks & Cemeteries desires to maintain the Cemetery at an appearance acceptable to the citizens. The cemetery represents an area where our loved ones are remembered; a place where we can all visit with love and devotion. The City of Poteau's Parks & Cemeteries Department, located at 1401 South McKenna street, is run by Billy Cripps who can be reached via phone at (918)-647-3703. If you have a question about a lot you can contact office manager Rocky Sumpter in office or by email.

Parks & Cemeteries office hours are from 
M-F, 8AM - 12PM, 1PM - 4PM. 


Lots & Space Pricing

Cemetery spaces are $200.00 each.

See Rules & Information for more information about lot sizes. Each space is 4'x10' and up to three cremations can be put on one grave space but only one headstone on the grave.

Requirements for Baby-Land

• Infants up to one year of age may be buried in Baby-Land.
• No charges for the plot or the grave opening.
• All headstone will be 10"x 20" in size and made of gray granite set flush with the soil.  The family will be responsible for the headstone will be set by the cemetery employees.
• The City of Poteau reserves the right to determine which plot is used.  This facility is available to local residents

• Weekday, Monday - Friday, except holidays       $200.00
• Weekend, Saturday - Sunday and holidays         $250.00
• Cremations, weekdays, except holidays               $50.00
• Cremations, weekends and holidays                      $75.00
• Infants, weekdays, excepts holidays                      $50.00
• Infants, weekends and holidays                               $75.00

1. LOT
   A full lot is 10' x 20' or 10' x 16' with five grave spaces.
2. SPACE
   A space may be 4’ x 10'.
3. BURIAL
   All arrangements must be fully coordinated with the Cemetery office. Burial locations are the responsibility of the lot owner, next-of-kin, or person making the funeral arrangements. Based on the information given, Cemetery department will establish burial location for city digging.  Burial of all cremations will be made under the supervision of the cemetery caretaker.
4. MONUMENTS
      1.     Installation of all monuments will be made under the supervision of the cemetery caretaker. 
      2.     All headstones or family markers will be set parallel with the west corner markers of the lot.  
      3.     If a family marker already sits on the lot, all other monuments will be set flush with the ground.  If a family marker is set, then all other monuments will be set flush with the ground.  
      4.     If a concrete base is used under a monument, it will be set flush with the ground and cannot be above ground level anywhere.  
      5.     The base of a monument or concrete slab cannot be longer than the size of the lot owned by an individual.
5. FOOTSTONES: Please be advised that as of July 1, 1986, all installations of footstones in Oakland Cemetery, Poteau, OK will be made under the supervision of the cemetery caretaker under the following Policy. 
      1.    On a grave with no outside container or a wood box container, two (2) four (4) foot reinforcement rods will be used under the stone from one side of the grave to the other side allowing six (6) inches of reinforcement rod on each side of the grave.  The reinforcement rod will be put in at least four (4) inches of concrete.  The footstone must be flush with the ground.  
      2.     On a grave, with an outside container (concrete or steel box or concrete vault) a posthole will be dug to the top of the container and filled with concrete for the stone to set on.  The footstone must be flush with the ground.  
      3.     All footstones will be set flush with the ground, parallel with an east corner mark
6. CORNER MARKERS 
   1. All corner markers will be set flush with the ground and inside the cemetery corner markers.  
   2. Any dirt removed in the process of setting a monument will be taken to the cemetery dirt pile or removed from the cemetery.  
   
   With the above stated policy, the caretaker must inform the Monument Company as to what container is involved.  If any stone is not set in compliance with the stated policy, the Monument will be responsible for resetting the stone.
7. MONUMENT SETTING FEE
   No monument setting fee
8. TEMPORARY MARKERS
   These are provided by a funeral home for use until a regular monument is set. These markers will deteriorate rapidly and eventually must be removed from the grave.
9. CERTIFICATES OF OWNERSHIP (DEEDS)
   These are written and mailed by the City Deputy Clerk and are mailed to the lot owner, next-of-kin, or the funeral home. If you fail to receive one, please contact the Janice Greene, Deputy City Clerk, at City Hall at (918) 647-4192 for assistance.
10. FLOWERS: FRESH CUT OR ARTIFICIAL  
       1.    One (1) bunch of flowers is allowed at the head of each grave on the ground, besides what flowers are on the monument.  
       2.    No flowers are allowed at the foot of the grave. 
       3.    Artificial flowers will be left on a grave until the dirt is leveled, then only one flower will be left at the head of the grave. 
       4.    Only one pipe may be put in the ground for flowers per headstone or family.  If a pipe is used for flowers, this constitutes as the flower or the ground at a grave.  
       5.     Memorial Day decoration is the only exception to the policy.  For two (2) weeks after Decoration Day, any amount of flowers are allowed on the grave.  On Monday, two weeks following Memorial Day, all flowers except for the flowers on a stone and one (1) bunch on the ground will be picked up. 
    
    No live plants flowers shrubs or trees will be planted in the cemetery without prior approval of the Cemetery Sexton.
    
    NO dirt work of any kind will be done in the cemetery without prior approval of the Cemetery Sexton.
    
    No curbs, rock, gravel, or fence of any kind is allowed to be used in the cemetery.
    
11. LANDSCAPING
    Due to long term maintenance problems and mowing requirements, the following are not permitted in the Cemetery:
    1. Bricks, stones, rocks, pipes, concrete curbing, etc. around the lots.
    2. Loose rock/chat, wood, or other types of lot filler material.
    3. Herbicides
    4. Glass or other breakables
    5. Cactus or rose bushes NOTE: Before any live flowers are placed on a lot/ space, please contact the Cemetery Sexton.
    6. Fences or other non-monument structures
    7. No grass shall be removed from any lot unless arrangements are made for re-seeding, etc. (No plain dirt lots, please).
    8. Watering no longer than (2) hours
12. DECORATION
    All wreaths etc. should be tied down to prevent wind blowing. Southwest Oklahoma winds tend to scatter the wreaths onto neighboring lots and are a loss to you.
13. MEMENTOS
    Please do not leave any type of mementos on your space or lot. Things have a way of disappearing and these mementos are precious to you.
14. FUNERALS  
     For any pending funeral service, the cemetery caretaker should have knowledge of grave location and type of outside container no later than noon the day prior to the service.  Outside containers must be concrete or steel.
15. PURCHASING LOTS
    Arrangements in advance (pre-need) for lot buying may be handled through the Cemetery office or City Hall.
16. VETERAN MONUMENTS
    Ordering Veteran monuments can be made through a funeral home or the Cemetery office. You may pay a monument company to set your stone or volunteer labor through the local VFW Post will set your stone at no charge.
17. CONCERNS OR COMPLAINTS
    Please refer all concerns or complaints to Billy Cripps for resolution. You may contact Billy at (918) 647-3703 with these concerns and complaints.  Every effort will be made to accommodate you. Please call the numbers listed above for appointments or come by the City Hall. We welcome visits and suggestions.
    
    The policies of the cemetery are not necessarily restricted to the policies stated herein.

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Looking to start your genealogy research?

The City of Poteau currently does not offer online death/ burial records from our two cemeteries, however, if you are looking for information on a deceased family member that is buried at the City's Cemeteries please follow this process: