Lewis and his wife Marie Thompson were homesteaders who settled down in the area which is now part of the town of Surprise. In 1936, Marie established a small cemetery in one acre of the Thompson family ranch. The Thompson's would regularly hold Bible studies in their ranch house. In 1936, their son, 15 year-old Robert Thompson and his friend were playing with a gun when suddenly it accidentally went off and fatally shot him. Thus, he became the first person to be buried in the cemetery.Arizona Republic
