Spring Grove Cemetery

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For other uses, see Spring Grove Cemetery (disambiguation).
Spring Grove Cemetery
The Gothic Revival Dexter Memorial at Spring Grove Cemetery
Location Cincinnati, Ohio
Built 1855
Architect Adolph Strauch et al.
Architectural style Gothic Revival
Governing body Private
NRHP Reference # 76001440[1]
Added to NRHP May 13, 1976

Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum (733 acres) is a nonprofit garden cemetery and arboretum located at 4521 Spring Grove Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the second largest cemetery in the United States[2] and is recognized as a U.S. National Historic Landmark.

History

The cemetery dates from 1844, when members of the Cincinnati Horticultural Society formed a cemetery association. They took their inspiration from contemporary rural cemeteries such as Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, and Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[3] The numerous springs and groves suggested the name "Spring Grove".[4] On December 1, 1844 Salmon P. Chase and others prepared the Articles of Incorporation. The cemetery was formally chartered on January 21, 1845, and the first burial took place on September 1, 1845. In 1855 Adolph Strauch, a renowned landscape architect, was hired to beautify the grounds.[5] His sense and layout of the "garden cemetery", made of lakes, trees and shrubs, is what visitors today still see. In 1987, the association officially changed its name to "Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum" to better represent its remarkable collection of both native and exotic trees, as well as its State and National Champion Trees.

On March 29, 2007, the cemetery was designated a National Historic Landmark.[6] The Spring Grove Cemetery Chapel is listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places.

On Wednesday 23 Oct 2013, it had been announced that staff at the Spring Grove Cemetery had removed a SpongeBob SquarePants headstone from the resting spot of US army corporal, Kimberly Walker, only one day after her funeral. This was after the funeral home had given the family the go ahead, to use the SpongeBob headstone.[7]

Grave of Salmon P. Chase at Spring Grove Cemetery.

Spring Grove encompasses 733 acres (2.97 km2) of which 400 acres (1.6 km2) are currently landscaped and maintained. Its grounds include 12 ponds,[8] many fine tombstones and memorials, and various examples of Gothic Revival architecture. As of 2005, its National Champion trees were Cladrastis kentukea and Halesia diptera; its State Champion trees included Abies cilicica, Abies koreana, Cedrus libani, Chionanthus virginicus, Eucommia ulmoides, Halesia parvifolia, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, Phellodendron amurense, Picea orientalis, Picea polita, Pinus flexilis, Pinus griffithi, Pinus monticola, Quercus cerris, Quercus nigra, Taxodium distichum, Ulmus serotina, and Zelkova serrata.

Notable burials

See also Category:Burials at Spring Grove Cemetery.

Weeping statue at Spring Grove Cemetery.

See also

  • List of botanical gardens in the United States

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23. 
  2. ↑ http://www.springgrove.org/Cemeteries.shtm
  3. ↑ The Cincinnati Cemetery of Spring Grove, Report for 1857. C. F. Bradley, printers. 1857. p. 3. 
  4. ↑ Picturesque Cincinnati. John Shillito Company. 1883. p. 194. 
  5. ↑ Stradling, David (Oct 1, 2003). Cincinnati: From River City to Highway Metropolis. Arcadia Publishing. p. 35. Retrieved 2013-05-25. 
  6. ↑ http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/listings/20070413.HTM
  7. ↑ "Ms Walker’s family are furious with the graveyard’s U-turn after paying $13,000 (£8,000) for the headstone and getting copyright approval from Nickelodeon.". Metro.co.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2013. 
  8. ↑ Rolfes, Steven (Oct 29, 2012). Cincinnati Landmarks. Arcadia Publishing. p. 43. Retrieved 2013-05-19. 

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Coordinates: 39°09′52″N 84°31′22″W / 39.164559°N 84.522672°W / 39.164559; -84.522672

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