 On the morning of Oct. 4, 1934, readers of the Auburn Journal were informed that Colin B. Hislop was going to build a brand new, state-of-the-art mortuary on Lincoln Way. Hislop’s mortuary and undertaking business was on the corner of Court and Commercial streets and he planned to move into the new building once it was complete.
In the early 1900s, Colin Hislop lived in Rocklin. He worked as a quarryman and in 1909 became an undertaker. In 1914 he ran for and was elected Placer County coroner and public administrator. He moved to Auburn in 1915 and bought a percentage of the Walsh-Keena undertaking business. By the late 1920s, he acquired the rest of the business, and it became Hislop’s Mortuary. He also continued serving as coroner, being re-elected four times before losing to Elliott Broyer of Roseville in 1934.
In 1935, the new mortuary was complete, and he welcomed the public in a two-day grand open house event on June 30 and July 1. It was called Hislop’s Little Chapel of the Hills. He sold the business in 1944 and he passed away nine years later in 1953. The Chapel of the Hills still operates today from the same building Hislop built in 1935.
In 2017, the Chapel of the Hills donated a large collection of vintage mortuary tools to the Placer County Museum that date from the 19th century to the 1930s. Some of these tools may have been used by Hislop himself. You can see some of them this month if you visit our museum in the historic courthouse where we have a new exhibit, “A Grave Affair,” that interprets the rituals, tools and business of death in the 19th and early 20th centuries. You can even take a selfie in one of our coffins! Plan your visit, here.
Photo: Colin B. Hislop and his hearse, c. 1935
 Don’t miss the fun coming this next week in...
Roseville: Roseville BikeFest, Food Truck Mania
Rocklin: Park Pulse in Rocklin
Lincoln: Lincoln’s Kick The Dust Up
...and many Placer County Library and Placer County Museum events.
Visit our regional partners to discover more of the fun happening right here in Placer County!
Placer County Visitors' Bureau
North Lake Tahoe Resort Association
The Arts Council of Placer County
Placer Valley Tourism
PlacerGROWN
Placer Wine Trail
Find current state COVID-19 guidance, along with local data and resources, here.
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