The Oak Grove Cemetery is an historic cemetery on Jones Road in

Falmouth, Massachusetts Falmouth ( ) is a New England town, town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 32,517 at the 2020 census, making Falmouth the second-largest municipality on Cape Cod after Barnstable, Massachusetts, Barnstable. T ...

Overview

The private cemetery was established in 1849 with the initial purchase of of land fronting on Palmer Road. This original section of the cemetery was laid out in the then-popular

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-19th century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries, which tended to be churchyards. Rural cemeter ...

style, with winding lanes. The cemetery was enlarged in 1886, 1939, and 1952, with the 1939 purchase including the section facing Jones Road that now serves as its main entrance. Its Colonial Revival chapel was built in 1935 with funding by a bequest of Elizabeth G. Parke. The cemetery is the burying ground for many of Falmouth's most important citizens, including most of its veterans (including those from the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

and the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

which were relocated from family cemeteries), and ship captains who were the town's leading citizens in the 19th century. One of its most famous burials is that of

Katharine Lee Bates Katharine Lee Bates (August 12, 1859 – March 28, 1929) was an American author and poet, chiefly remembered for her anthem "America the Beautiful", but also for her many books and articles on social reform, on which she was a noted speaker. B ...

, author of "

America The Beautiful "America the Beautiful" is an American patriotic song. Its lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and its music was composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Church (Newark), Grace Episcopal Church in Newark, New ...

". 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 2014.

Notable burials

* Frank Barrows (1844–1922),

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player for the Boston Red Stockings *

(1859–1929), author of

America the Beautiful "America the Beautiful" is an American patriotic song. Its lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and its music was composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Church (Newark), Grace Episcopal Church in Newark, New ...

* Sylvia Donaldson (1849–1937), one of the first women elected to the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...

Robert Emmons Robert Wales Emmons II (December 28, 1872 – April 18, 1928) was an American football player, coach, yachtsman, and millionaire. He played and coached college football for Harvard University from 1891 to 1895. He later had a successful career in ...

(1872–1928), football player and coach, yachtsman, and millionaire * Irvin McDowell Garfield (1870–1951), son of president

James A. Garfield James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831 – September 19, 1881) was the 20th president of the United States, serving from March 1881 until his death in September that year after being shot two months earlier. A preacher, lawyer, and Civi ...

* Charles Fessenden Morse (1839–1926), Union Army officer * Joshua Crowell Robinson (1834–1908), member of the

References

{{Authority control 1849 establishments in Massachusetts Cemeteries in Barnstable County, Massachusetts Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Falmouth, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Barnstable County, Massachusetts Rural cemeteries Cemeteries established in the 1850s

Overview

Notable burials

See also

References