In fall 1932 — in connection with San Francisco's mandated "eviction" of cemeteries within the city limits — the remains of Emperor Norton were exhumed from their original resting place in the city’s Masonic Cemetery.

In 1934, the Emperor was reburied, with a new headstone, at his current resting place: Woodlawn Memorial Park, in Colma, Calif.

A public ceremony dedicating the new gravesite was held at Woodlawn on 30 June 1934. This is the date that received headlines around the country — and it is the date that those who follow the Emperor's story associate with his reburial.

But the reburial itself took place nearly 3 months earlier, on 2 April 1934 — 91 years ago today.

Click below to learn more — and for our suggestion about how to provide for more thoughtful and intentional preservation and care of Emperor Norton's headstone and gravesite.