The preservation of Hillsboro's Pioneer Cemetery is taking a vital step forward thanks to the award of a Historic Cemeteries Grant through the Oregon Commission on Historic Cemeteries.

The project will begin this fall and be led by Historic Preservation Northwest, with restoration efforts focused on repairing and stabilizing the cemetery’s most at-risk headstones.

Established in 1860, the Pioneer Cemetery is a treasured historical site that reflects the area’s early settler history. However, time, vandalism, and burrowing ground squirrels have left approximately 100 headstones damaged, unstable, or in disrepair.

Repair Phase 1, supported through this grant, will target 35 high-priority headstones — those that are broken, leaning, or at greatest risk of further damage. The work will be carried out by preservation specialists David Pinyerd and Bernadette Niederer, principals with Historic Preservation Northwest, who bring deep expertise in the conservation of historic stonework.

“This project is the first step in a multi-phase plan to restore and preserve all damaged markers over the next six years, as additional funding becomes available,” said Amber Rios, City Recorder.

The Historic Cemeteries Grant program supports restoration efforts in cemeteries listed with the Oregon Commission on Historic Cemeteries. The funding ensures these sacred spaces are honored, protected, and shared with future generations.

Funding categories include:

• Protection and Security
• Restoration and Preservation
• Education and Training
• Research and Interpretation

For more information about the project or the cemetery in general, please email Amber Rios, City Recorder.