Mount Feake Cemetery is a historic cemetery at 203 Prospect Street in
Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the Technological and industrial history of the United States, American Industrial Revoluti ...
.
Overview
Established in 1857, it is the city's second cemetery, after
Grove Hill Cemetery, and is one of the best-preserved
garden cemeteries in the state.
It takes its name from its highest point, Mount Feake, which was named by Governor
John Winthrop
John Winthrop (January 12, 1588 – March 26, 1649) was an English Puritan lawyer and a leading figure in the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the second major settlement in New England following Plymouth Colony. Winthrop led the fir ...
in 1632 for his future nephew-in-law,
Robert Feake
Robert Feake (c. 1602-c.1661) was an early New England settler, soldier, goldsmith, and founder of what is now Greenwich, Connecticut.
Biography
Feake was a goldsmith and likely came to New England with the Winthrop fleet of 1630. Governor John ...
, one of the founding settlers of
Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Sq ...
. The cemetery was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1989.
Mount Feake Cemetery was designed by
Robert Morris Copeland
Robert Morris Copeland Sr. (December 11, 1830 – March 28, 1874) was a landscape architecture, landscape architect, city planning, town planner and Union Army officer in the American Civil War. Along with his partner Horace Cleveland, H. W. S. Cl ...
, and was from its inception compared to the older
Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery, located in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, is the first rural or garden cemetery in the United States. It is the burial site of many prominent Boston Brahmins, and is a National Historic Landmark.
Dedicated in ...
in
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
. It stands on a somewhat rugged parcel of land that rises above the
Charles River
The Charles River (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ), sometimes called the River Charles or simply the Charles, is an river in eastern Massachusetts. It flows northeast from Hopkinton, Massachusetts, Hopkinton to Boston along a highly me ...
across from the
Waltham Watch Company
The Waltham Watch Company, also known as the American Waltham Watch Co. and the American Watch Co., was a company that produced about 40 million watches, clocks, speedometers, compasses, time delay fuses, and other precision instruments in the Un ...
complex. A series of winding lanes, designed to complement the terrain, provide access to all parts of the cemetery. Most of the grave markers are made of granite, although marble and limestone are also well-represented.
[
One unusual item once added some romantic charm to the cemetery. The remains of a brick water pumping station, built in 1872 and enlarged in 1896-97, stood on the grounds of the cemetery, and provided a picturesque ruin to the environment. Adjacent to this building stood two Italianate houses, as well as a carriage house and sheds, that were historically associated with the pumping station.][ All of these buildings were demolished, probably in the late 20th century.
Notable burials include ]Marta Adams
Marta Adams (née Marta Arnstem; 1891 – 1978) was a German-born sculptor and painter, who lived in Boston and Mexico City. She was known for her animal and floral themed artwork. She is also known as Martha Adams.
Biography
Marta Arnstem was ...
(1891–1978).
Images
File:Waltham MA Mount Feake Cemetery.JPG, Headstones in Mount Feake Cemetery.
File:Geese at Mount Feake Femetery December 2021.jpg, Canada geese
The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), sometimes called Canadian goose, is a large species of goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North ...
grazing in the grass at Mount Feake Cemetery.
File:Mt Feake Cemetery aerial extract.JPG, Aerial view of Mount Feake Cemetery.
See also
*
References
External links
{{Authority control
Buildings and structures in Waltham, Massachusetts
Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Italianate architecture in Massachusetts
1857 establishments in Massachusetts
Cemeteries in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Waltham, Massachusetts
Rural cemeteries