Historical documents show that the cemetery was operating in 1825, and that it was exclusively a Catholic cemetery until 1883. In April, 1885 a storm caused a landslide that dragged several coffins into the houses located on the slopes of the hill, killing some residents. The 1906 Valparaíso earthquake destroyed the chapel of the cemetery, which was built in 1835, the entrance's clock tower and the mausoleum that contained the heart of Diego Portales.