Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic

rural cemetery A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-nineteenth century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries. They were typically built one to five ...

in the

East Falls East Falls (also The Falls, formerly the Falls of Schuylkill) is a neighborhood in the Northwest section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It lies on the east bank of the "Falls of the Schuylkill," cataracts submerged in ...

neighborhood of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

. Founded in 1836, it was the second major rural cemetery in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

after

Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery is the first rural, or garden, cemetery in the United States, located on the line between Cambridge and Watertown in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, west of Boston. It is the burial site of many prominent Boston Brah ...

in Boston, Massachusetts. The cemetery is in size and overlooks the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It f ...

. The cemetery grew to its current size through the purchase of four land parcels between 1836 and 1861. It contains over 11,000 family lots and more than 33,000 graves, including many adorned with grand marble and granite funerary monuments, elaborately sculpted hillside tombs and mausoleums., Aaron V. Wunsch, National Park Service, 1998. It is affiliated with

West Laurel Hill Cemetery West Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869, is 200 acres in size and contains the burials of many notable people. It is affiliated with Laurel Hill Cemetery in neighboring P ...

in nearby

Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania Bala Cynwyd ( ) is a community in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. It is located on the Philadelphia Main Line in Southeastern Pennsylvania, bordering the western edge of Philadelphia at U.S. Route 1 (City Avenue). It was originally two sep ...

and is an accredited

arboretum An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...

with over 6,000 trees and shrubs representing 700 species. In 1977, Laurel Hill Cemetery was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and in 1998, became the first cemetery in the United States to be designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places liste ...

History

The cemetery was founded in 1836 by John Jay Smith, a librarian and editor with interests in horticulture and real estate, who was distressed at the way his deceased daughter was interred at the Arch Street Meeting House burial ground in Philadelphia. Smith wrote, "Philadelphia should have a rural cemetery on dry ground, where feelings should not be harrowed by viewing the bodies of beloved relatives plunged into mud and water." Smith joined forces with other prominent Philadelphia citizens including Benjamin Wood Richards, William Strickland and Nathan Dunn to form the Laurel Hill Cemetery Company and create a rural cemetery three miles north of the Philadelphia border on the east bank of the

. The group considered several locations but decided on the 32 acre former estate of businessman Joseph Sims known as "Laurel" or "Laurel Hill". The location was viewed as a haven from urban expansion and a respite from the increasingly industrialized city center. The city later grew past Laurel Hill, but the cemetery retained its rural character. River terrace section of Laurel Hill Cemetery

River terrace section of Laurel Hill Cemetery

Designs for the cemetery were submitted by William Strickland and

Thomas Ustick Walter Thomas Ustick Walter (September 4, 1804 – October 30, 1887) was an American architect of German descent, the dean of American architecture between the 1820 death of Benjamin Latrobe and the emergence of H.H. Richardson in the 1870s. He was ...

but the commission selected Scottish-American architect John Notman. Notman's designs incorporated the topography of the location and included a string of terraces that descended to the river. The cemetery was developed and completed between 1836 and 1839. Notman designed the gatehouse which consists of a massive Roman arch surrounded by an imposing classical colonnade and topped with a large ornamental urn. A large Gothic Revival style chapel was built on the grounds but removed in the 1880s to make room for additional graves. Old Mortality LH Philly

In 1836, the cemetery purchased a group of three sandstone statues from Scottish sculptor James Thom, known as

Old Mortality ''Old Mortality'' is one of the Waverley novels by Walter Scott. Set in south west Scotland, it forms, along with ''The Black Dwarf'', the 1st series of his '' Tales of My Landlord'' (1816). The novel deals with the period of the Covenanters, ...

. The statues were placed in a small enclosure in the central courtyard directly in front of the main gatehouse. The statues are based on a tale by

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy ...

and depict Scott talking to Old Mortality, an elderly man who traveled through the Scottish Highlands re-carving weathered tombstones, along with his pony. A plaster bust of the artist, James Thom, was added to the display in 1872. The owners of the cemetery intended to equate the mission of Old Mortality with their own - to keep the cemetery in perpetual care so future generations may remember the deceased. To increase its cachet, the cemetery's organizers had the remains of several famous Revolutionary War figures moved there, including

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

secretary

Charles Thomson Charles Thomson (November 29, 1729 – August 16, 1824) was an Irish-born Patriot leader in Philadelphia during the American Revolution and the secretary of the Continental Congress (1774–1789) throughout its existence. As secretary, Thomson ...

;

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of th ...

signer

Thomas McKean Thomas McKean (March 19, 1734June 24, 1817) was an American lawyer, politician, and Founding Father. During the American Revolution, he was a Delaware delegate to the Continental Congress, where he signed the Continental Association, the United ...

; Philadelphia war veteran and shipbuilder Jehu Eyre; hero of the Battle of Princeton, Hugh Mercer; and first director of the U.S. Mint,

David Rittenhouse David Rittenhouse (April 8, 1732 – June 26, 1796) was an American astronomer, inventor, clockmaker, mathematician, surveyor, scientific instrument craftsman, and public official. Rittenhouse was a member of the American Philosophical Society a ...

. Many of the elaborate funerary monuments were designed by notable artists and architects including

Alexander Milne Calder Alexander Milne Calder (August 23, 1846 – June 4, 1923) (MILL-nee) was a Scottish American sculptor best known for the architectural sculpture of Philadelphia City Hall. Both his son, Alexander Stirling Calder, and grandson, Alexander "San ...

Alexander Stirling Calder Alexander Stirling Calder (January 11, 1870 – January 7, 1945) was an American sculptor and teacher. He was the son of sculptor Alexander Milne Calder and the father of sculptor Alexander (Sandy) Calder. His best-known works are ''George Washi ...

Harriet Whitney Frishmuth Harriet Whitney Frishmuth (September 17, 1880 – January 1, 1980) was an American sculptor known for her works in bronze. Life She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her parents divorced when she was in her teens, and she moved to Europe wi ...

and William Strickland. The monument design styles include

Classical Revival Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

and

Egyptian Revival Egyptian Revival is an architectural style that uses the motifs and imagery of ancient Egypt. It is attributed generally to the public awareness of ancient Egyptian monuments generated by Napoleon's conquest of Egypt and Admiral Nelson's defeat ...

made out of materials such as marble, granite, cast-iron and sandstone. From its inception, Laurel Hill was intended as a civic institution designed for public use. In an era before public parks, museums and arboretums, it was a multi-purpose cultural attraction where the general public could experience the art and refinement previously known only to the wealthy. By the 1840s, Laurel Hill was an immensely popular destination and required tickets for admission. Writer

Andrew Jackson Downing Andrew Jackson Downing (October 31, 1815 – July 28, 1852) was an American landscape designer, horticulturist, and writer, a prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival in the United States, and editor of ''The Horticulturist'' magazine (1846–5 ...

reported "''nearly 30,000 persons…entered the gates between April and December, 1848.''" In 1844, due to increasing popularity, Laurel Hill purchased the 27-acre former estate of jurist

William Rawle William Rawle (April 28, 1759 – April 12, 1836) was an American lawyer in Philadelphia, who in 1791 was appointed as United States district attorney in Pennsylvania. He was a founder and first president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania ...

, half a mile south and named it South Laurel Hill. In 1849, a set of iron gates on sandstone piers was built in the southeastern corner of the cemetery and served as a secondary entrance. Yellow Fever Memorial in Laurel Hill Cemetery

Yellow Fever Memorial in Laurel Hill Cemetery

In 1855, the Pennsylvania State Assembly authorized the cemetery to purchase an additional 10 acres from Frederick Stoever known as the Stoever Tract. The

Yellow Fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. ...

Monument was built in this section in 1859 to honor the "Doctors, Druggists and Nurses" who helped fight the epidemic in

Portsmouth, Virginia Portsmouth is an independent city in southeast Virginia and across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,915. It is part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. The Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Naval M ...

. In 1860, Laurel Hill Cemetery had an estimated 140,000 people visit annually. In 1861, the 21-acre estate of George Pepper between the two cemeteries was purchased and named Central Laurel Hill. With these additions, the cemetery reached the current size of approximately 95 acres. A bridge was built over Hunting Park Avenue to connect Central and South Laurel Hill. The cemetery association restricted who could buy lots and the majority of burials were for white Protestants. The cemetery discouraged unmarried people from buying lots in order to keep the cemetery as a family destination. During and after the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

, Laurel Hill became the final resting place of hundreds of military figures, including 40 Civil War-era generals. Laurel Hill also became the favored burial place for many of Philadelphia's most prominent political and business figures, including

Matthias W. Baldwin Matthias William Baldwin (December 10, 1795 – September 7, 1866) was an American inventor and machinery manufacturer, specializing in the production of steam locomotives. Baldwin's small machine shop, established in 1825, grew to become B ...

, founder of the

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, in the early 20th century. The company was for decades ...

;

Henry Disston Henry Disston (May 24, 1819 – March 16, 1878) was an English American industrialist who founded the Keystone Saw Works in 1840 and developed the surrounding Tacony neighborhood of Philadelphia to build housing for his workers. His company be ...

, owner of the largest saw factory in the world (the

Disston Saw Works Disston Saw Works was an American company owned by Henry Disston that manufactured handsaws during the mid-19th to early 20th century in the Tacony neighborhood of Philadelphia. The company was initially named Keystone Saw Works and then Hen ...

); and financier Peter A. B. Widener. Laurel Hill Cemetery Advertisement (1904)

By the mid-19th century, the creation of

Fairmount Park Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, wit ...

and the encroaching city began to limit the expansion of Laurel Hill Cemetery. In 1869, John Jay Smith, the founder of Laurel Hill Cemetery, purchased 200 acres from three farms in nearby

for the creation of

. The first burial occurred in 1870. In 1913, a

Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...

receiving vault made of

terra cotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

was built in South Laurel Hill near the bridge connecting it to Central Laurel Hill. By the 1970s, Laurel Hill Cemetery had fallen out of favor as a burial site. Many bodies were re-interred at the more suburban West Laurel Hill Cemetery and the remaining graves suffered neglect, vandalism and crime. In 1973, Laurel Hill updated its policy and removed the prohibition on the burial of African-Americans in the cemetery. In 1978, the Friends of Laurel Hill Cemetery, a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of ...

non-profit organization, was founded by descendants of John Jay Smith to support the cemetery. The mission of the Friends is to assist the Laurel Hill Cemetery Company in preserving and promoting the historical character of Laurel Hill. The Friends raise funds and seek contributed services; prepare educational and research materials emphasizing the historical, architectural and cultural importance of Laurel Hill Cemetery; and provide tour guides to educate the public. The organization was instrumental in Laurel Hill Cemetery's placement on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977 and designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1998. In 2013, an 1883 bronze statue of a Civil War soldier was moved to Laurel Hill Cemetery. Cast at the

Bureau Brothers Foundry Bureau Brothers Foundry was a foundry established by two French immigrants, Achille and Edouard Bureau, in Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in ...

, "The Silent Sentry" weighs 700 pounds and stands 7 feet, 2 inches high. It was installed in 1883 at the Soldiers' Home of Philadelphia burial plot in Mount Moriah Cemetery. In 1970, thieves removed the statue from its base and attempted to sell it as

scrap metal Scrap consists of recyclable materials, usually metals, left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has monetary value, especially recovered m ...

to a scrap yard in

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 20 ...

, but the scrap dealer notified the authorities. It was recovered and repaired by the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

. In 2013, the statue was installed and rededicated in Laurel Hill Cemetery. Laurel Hill Cemetery is also an accredited

with over 6,000 trees and shrubs representing 700 species. The arboretum is a member of the

American Public Gardens Association The American Public Gardens Association, formerly the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta, is an association of public- garden institutions and professionals primarily in the United States and Canada. Over the last six decades ...

. Today, Laurel Hill Cemetery is a popular tourist destination that attracts thousands of visitors every year for historical tours, concerts, and physical recreation.

Notable burials

In popular culture

* Tombstones for the fictional characters Adrian Balboa and Paulie Pennino from the ''Rocky'' movies sit near the main gatehouse. The Adrian Balboa tombstone was used as a prop in the 2006 movie ''

Rocky Balboa Robert "Rocky" Balboa (also known by his ring name The Italian Stallion), is a fictional title character and the protagonist of the ''Rocky'' film series. The character was created by Sylvester Stallone, who has also portrayed him in all eight ...

'' and both were used in the 2015 movie ''Creed''. In the films, Rocky visits the gravesites in the cemetery's South Laurel Hill section. *In 2009, Laurel Hill was a movie location for the films '' Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' and ''

Law Abiding Citizen ''Law Abiding Citizen'' is a 2009 American vigilante action thriller film directed by F. Gary Gray, written by Kurt Wimmer, and starring Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler (who also co-produced). The film takes place in Philadelphia, telling the stor ...

''. * The 2010 young adult book
Tombstone Tea
' by Joanne Dahme takes place in Laurel Hill Cemetery and some of the well-known people buried there, such as

Adam Forepaugh Adam John Forepaugh (born Adam John Forbach; February 28, 1831 – January 22, 1890) was an American horse trader and circus owner. From 1865 through 1890 his circus operated under various names including Forepaugh's Circus, Forepaugh's Gigantic ...

and

Elisha Kent Kane Elisha Kent Kane (February 3, 1820 – February 16, 1857) was a United States Navy medical officer and Arctic explorer. He served as assistant surgeon during Caleb Cushing's journey to China to negotiate the Treaty of Wangxia and in the Af ...

, appear as characters.

Gallery

File:Disston tomb LH Philly.JPG, The

family mausoleum is the largest monument in Laurel Hill File:William J. Mullen Monument.jpg, The monument for William J. Mullen was built by Daniel Kornbau and exhibited at the 1876

Centennial Exhibition The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...

File:Harry Kalas permanent grave marker.JPG, The gravesite of

Harry Kalas Harold Norbert Kalas (March 26, 1936 – April 13, 2009) was an American sportscaster, best known for his Ford C. Frick Award-winning role as lead play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies, a position he held fr ...

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

radio broadcaster, includes a microphone shaped tombstone and two pairs of seats from

Veterans Stadium Veterans Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, at the northeast corner of Broad Street (Philadelphia), Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex. The seating capa ...

File:Mother and Twins, Laurel Hill.JPG, The Mother and Twins Monument was carved by Polish sculptor Henry Dmochowski-Saunders. It depicts his deceased wife Helena Schaff and their two deceased children File:Elisha Kent Kane mausoleum and historical plaque.jpg, Polar explorer

was interred in the family's hillside tomb File:Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, PA.jpg, Sculpture on William Warner memorial by

depicting a woman releasing a soul from a sarcophagus File:MatthiasBaldwinGrave.jpg, Memorial for

, Founder of

File:Robert Patterson memorial and tombstone.jpg, Memorial for

Robert Patterson Robert Patterson (January 12, 1792 – August 7, 1881) was an Irish-born United States major general during the American Civil War, chiefly remembered for inflicting an early defeat on Stonewall Jackson, but crucially failing to stop Confed ...

, Union general during the Civil War File:HC Lea grave LH Philly.jpg, The tomb of historian

Henry Charles Lea Henry Charles Lea (September 19, 1825 – October 24, 1909) was an American publisher, civic activist, philanthropist and historian from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He took over the family publishing business from his father, Isaac Lea, and imp ...

is adorned with a bronze sculpture of

Clio In Greek mythology, Clio ( , ; el, Κλειώ), also spelled Kleio, is the muse of history, or in a few mythological accounts, the muse of lyre playing. Etymology Clio's name is etymologically derived from the Greek root κλέω/κλε ...

, the muse of history, by

File:LouisAGodeyGrave.jpg, Memorial for

Louis Antoine Godey Louis Antoine Godey (June 6, 1804 – November 29, 1878) was an American editor and publisher. He was the founder of '' Godey's Lady's Book'' in 1837, the first successful American women's fashion magazine. Biography Godey was born to Louis and M ...

, editor and publisher of ''

Godey's Lady's Book ''Godey's Lady's Book'', alternatively known as ''Godey's Magazine and Lady's Book'', was an American women's magazine that was published in Philadelphia from 1830 to 1878. It was the most widely circulated magazine in the period before the Civil ...

'' File:Soldiers Home Memorial in Laurel Hill Cemetery.jpg, "The Silent Sentry" was stolen from Mount Moriah Cemetery in 1970 but was recovered and rededicated in Laurel Hill in 2013.

References

Citations Sources * * * *

External links

*
Historic American Buildings Survey, Laurel Hill Cemetery, HABS No. PA-1811
(Adobe .pdf format)
Laurel Hill Cemetery
at

Find A Grave Find a Grave is a website that allows the public to search and add to an online database of cemetery records. It is owned by Ancestry.com. Its stated mission is "to help people from all over the world work together to find, record and present fi ...

Laurel Hill Cemetery sculptures, Association for Public Art website
*From the collection of

The Library Company of Philadelphia The Library Company of Philadelphia (LCP) is a non-profit organization based in Philadelphia. Founded in 1731 by Benjamin Franklin as a library, the Library Company of Philadelphia has accumulated one of the most significant collections of his ...

:
Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia
1840
General View of Laurel Hill Cemetery
ca. 1847 {{Authority control 1836 establishments in Pennsylvania Arboreta in Pennsylvania Cemeteries in Philadelphia Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia East Falls, Philadelphia Historic American Buildings Survey in Philadelphia National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania state historical marker significations Rural cemeteries Tourist attractions in Philadelphia Yellow fever monuments and memorials