The 13th annual Waking the Dead tours are 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. June 25 at Highland Cemetery.
The event is sponsored by the Paris Gibson Month Celebration Committee and visits 12 graves as storytellers present the stories of those buried there.
The graves and their storytellers are:
- Paris Gibson, founder of Great Falls played by Rich Briener
- Edwin Norris, former Montana governor played by Austin Haney
- Charlie Russell, cowboy artist played by Bill Bronson
- Nancy Russell, wife of Charlie Russell played by Paula Egan Wright from Cheyenne, Wyo.
- Ed Shields, founder of Great Falls Pet Cemetery, promoted story of Shep in Fort Benton played by Bill Zins, Shields’ nephew
- Ralph Jones, early day Great Falls resident who died falling off of the Big Stack played by Darren Smith
- Capt. John Moran, Medal of Honor recipient played by Dwight Smith
- Timothy E. Collins, prominent early day Great Falls businessman played by Shari Schmit
- Robert Vaughn, founder of the Town of Vaughn played by Thomas Ricberg
- Billy Colgan, early National League baseball player played by Mark Dunn
- Mary Little, notorious early day businesswoman played by Ann Ashby
- H.P. Rolfe, first Great Falls Surveyor played by Ken Robison
Cars will park in the field inside the cemetery gate where three trailers will be waiting to be loaded.
Tour seating is limited and tickets should be purchased in advance.
Participants should arrive 15 minutes early to keep tours on schedule.
At the conclusion of the tours, participants will receive a free booklet with photos and the featured grave stories provided by Croxford Funeral Home and Crematory. Each of the featured graves are marked by a sign donated by Kelly’s Signs.
The date of the tours is scheduled on the Sunday afternoon closest to the birthday of Great Falls Founder Paris Gibson which is July 1. This year marks his 193rd birthday.
Tour tickets are $20 to ride, $15 to walk and are available at Kaufmans Menswear, 411 Central Ave.
For more information contact Susie McIntyre, Paris Gibson Committee chair at 406-453-0349 or smcintyre@greatfallslibrary.
