Calvary Cemetery (Queens, New York)

For other places with the same name, see Calvary Cemetery (disambiguation).
Calvary Cemetery
Details
Year established 1848
Country USA
Location Queens, New York City
Type Catholic Cemetery
Owned by The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
Number of interments 3 million

The Roman Catholic Calvary Cemetery in Queens has the largest number of interments of any cemetery in the United States with more than 3 million burials.[1] The offices of Calvary Cemetery are located at 49-02 Laurel Hill Blvd. in Woodside in the New York City borough of Queens, New York. The cemetery is managed by the Trustees of St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York. It is one of the oldest and largest cemeteries in the United States.[2]

Calvary Cemetery is divided into four sections. The oldest, First Calvary, is also called "Old Calvary." The Second, Third and Fourth sections are all considered part of "New Calvary."

  1. First Calvary Cemetery is located at 49-02 Laurel Hill Blvd. between the Long Island Expressway and Review Ave.
  2. Second Calvary Cemetery is located on the west side of 58th St between Queens Blvd and the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.
  3. Third Calvary Cemetery is located on the west side of 58th St between the Long Island Expressway and the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.
  4. Fourth Calvary Cemetery is located on the west side of 58th St between the Long Island Expressway and 55th Ave.

Contents

History and description

In 1817, the Trustees of Old St. Patrick's Cathedral on Mott Street realized that their original cemetery on Mulberry Street was almost full.

In 1847, faced with cholera epidemics and a shortage of burial grounds in Manhattan, the New York State Legislature passed the Rural Cemetery Act authorizing nonprofit corporations to operate commercial cemeteries. On October 29, 1845 Old St. Patrick's Cathedral trustees had purchased 71 acres of land from John McMenoy and John McNolte in Maspeth and this land was used to develop Calvary Cemetery.

The cemetery was named after Mount Calvary, where Jesus Christ was crucified according to the New Testament.

Calvary was accessible by ferryboat from 23rd Street and the East River. It cost an adult seven dollars to be buried there. Burial of children under age seven cost three dollars; children aged seven to fourteen cost five dollars. As development in the East Village expanded, bodies buried in that neighborhood were transferred to Queens. In 1854, ferry service opened by 10th Street and the East River.

The first burial in Calvary Cemetery took place on July 31, 1848. The name of the deceased was Esther Ennis, having reportedly “died of a broken heart.” By 1852, there were 50 burials a day, half of them were poor Irish under seven years of age. In the early 20th century, influenza and tuberculosis epidemics created a shortage of gravediggers, and people dug graves for their own loved ones.[3]

The original division of the cemetery, now known as First Calvary or Old Calvary, was filled by 1867. The Archdiocese of New York expanded the area of the cemetery, adding more sections, and by the 1990s there were nearly 3 million burials in Calvary Cemetery. The cemetery was used in the film The Godfather for the funeral of Don Corleone. Now the Cemetery only accepts immediate interments; plots cannot be purchased in advance.

The chapel was designed by Raymond F. Almirall.[4]

Notable burials

Organized crime

Entertainers

Military figures

Politicians

Sports

Others

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.nymoon.com/pubs/undertone/dead/
  2. ^ Interment.net
  3. ^ "The Cemetery Belt", Newsday article by Rhona Amon. (Original URL broken, but mirrored at Juniper Park Civic Association)
  4. ^ Most Remarkable Mortuary Chapel in America

External links