Established in 1851. In 1854 the first Presbyterian Church in Western Canada was completed. It was erected under the direction of Rev John Black, the first resident Presbyterian minister. (See below for more details)

Black came to Kildonan in 1851, 37 years after the arrival of the first Presbyterian settlers from Scotland. Prior to this, the settlers attended Church of England services. Burials began in 1851 & many of the original Selkirk Settlers rest here. [One of] The oldest stone(s) in the cemetery: "In Memory of Marion (daughter of Robert & Christina) MUNROE who died 25th January 1854 aged 7 months & 21 days".

There are 4 distinct sections to the cemetery (see map). New land was acquired as the need arose.

(Source: Manitoba Genealogical Society [Adapted])

In 1854, the first Presbyterian Church in Western Canada was completed. It was erected by stonemason Duncan McRae under the direction of Reverend John Black, first resident Presbyterian minister.

A plaque was erected near the church by the Historic Sites Advisory Board of Manitoba. The church building is a provincially- and municipally-designated historic site.

Among the noteworthy people buried in this cemetery, all recognized by this Society as "Memorable Manitobans", are A. G. B. Bannatyne, John Black, George Bryce, Charles W. Gordon, John M. King, James McDiarmid, Gilbert McMicken, Margaret S. McWilliams, Roland F. McWilliams, Alexander Ross, James Ross, and John Sutherland.

Honour rolls for congregants who served and were killed in the First World War and Second World War are displayed at the nearby Nisbet Hall.

(Source: Manitoba Historical Society [Adapted])

On the grounds is the MacDonald Mausoleum (Section A, Row 2), a prominent grey stone structure and the only mausoleum in the cemetery. It was built for the MacDonald family, who were the owners of the MacDonald's Consolidated grocery supply business in Winnipeg that was eventually bought out by Safeway.

Dominion Land Survey coordinates: LSD10-27-11-03-E1

Now in the "Rivergrove" neighbourhood of the City of Winnipeg, this cemetery was a centrepiece of the historic community once known as "Old Kildonan", one of the many municipalities merged into and now an integral part of Greater Winnipeg.

A part of the town's story and those of its inhabitants from the early days of European settlement through roughly 1981 is told in the volume "Kildonan on the Red", especially starting on page 45. There are more details in the related volume "Where it All Began - The History of the Lord Selkirk - West Kildonan Community", especially starting on page 57. 

Free digital versions of these and many other Manitoba local history books can be found online in the University of Manitoba Digital Collections. There is also a list of such books organized by district and town name on the Manitoba Historical Society's website on their page entitled "Finding Aid: Manitoba Local History Books".

A list of burials in this cemetery is available from the Manitoba Genealogical Society (reference #nnnn), transcribed by a member or members in 1984 and updated in 2002. Also available to MGS members is a searchable online database named the "MGS Manitoba Name Index" (or MANI). Some additional information is contained in the 1996 MGS publication "Carved in Stone: Manitoba Cemeteries and Burial Sites" (revised edition, Special Projects Publication, 106 pages).

Further: The Old Kildonan Presbyterian Church located in the confines of the cemetery is recognized as a Provincial Heritage Site by the Government of Manitoba Historic Resources Branch (#077)