JULY 6, 2012 CEMETERY HUNTING

The only real equality is in the cemetery

- German Proverb

We are all equal in a cemetery. This is such a true statement. We all have different opinions on whether one should be cremated or buried. For years I have said I wanted to be cremated. I want my ashes scattered on the Corona Grounds, which was the site of the 1939 and 1964 New York World's Fair.
Right now I am unsure. I do not know why, but my mind seems unsettled. I will have to meditate on my remains. We are all human beings. We all should be treated equal.



There are many places to find peace and quiet in New York City. One of my hobbies has been finding those places. These places range from the Lotus Garden to St Lukes Garden. I find no one mentions cemeteries as a peaceful place. I am odd , but I do find resting places to be quiet, serene, and peaceful. I can think of 3 different hobbies in regard to cemeteries: 1. finding cemeteries within your city; 2. famous people buried in that cemetery; 3. photos of statues/gravestone; 4. finding wild flowers that grow in the cemetery. I could go on and on. I do not find this creepy, nor grotesque. I find it different !

Yesterday while walking down 2nd Avenue in the East Village/Bowery, Rick and  I came across a cemetery on 2nd Avenue that I never knew existed.

The New York Marble Cemetery is an historic cemetery founded in 1830, and located in the interior of the block bounded by East Second and 3rd Streets, Second Avenue, and The Bowery, in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is entered through an alleyway with an iron gate at each end, located between 41 and 43 Second Avenue. About 2,100 burials are recorded in the cemetery's written registers, most from prominent professional and merchant families in New York City. The New York Marble Cemetery, which was New York City's first non-sectarian burial place, should not be confused with the nearby New York City Marble Cemetery one block east, which is entirely separate, and was established one year later. ( I never knew NYC Marble Cemetery existed either)  Both cemeteries were designated New York City landmarks in 1969,and in 1980 both were added to the National Register of Historic Places. Do you want to this visit this cemetery ? I know I do ! It is open on the 4th Sunday of each month April to October.

During my childhood I recall Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, near the #4 Green Subway Line and Cavalry Cemetery in Queens. My great grandparents and many other family members are buried at Cavalry.
 Woodlawn Cemetery, established in 1863 is internationally known as the resting place of a host of history's greats. Non-sectarian and multicultural from its inception, those interred here include giants in the fields of business and industry, civic life, the arts, entertainment, and more. One of the nation's distinctive "garden cemeteries," Woodlawn provides a spectacular setting to honor the three hundred thousand individuals memorialized on its grounds. Its monuments represent some of the finest examples of memorial architecture and art in the nation, including over thirteen hundred private mausoleums.
Woodlawn will celebrate its 150th anniversary which began this year. It is a must visit. .It is home to the largest and most distinguished collection of historic mausoleums in the United States, and it remains an active property. There is a memorial to the RMS Titanic from 1912. Duke Ellington, Fiorella La Guardia, Jay Gould and Geraldine Fitzgerald are all buried here. The cemetery's designation recognizes its outstanding landscape design and collection of art and architecture. I know Rick would want to go to photograph the many monuments and statues, and I for the famous historians.

I have never looked for gravestones in the New York area. Some years ago, my trip to Paris had to include
Pere Lachaise Cemetery The cemetery is on Boulevard de Ménilmontant. The Paris Métro station Philippe Auguste on line 2 is next to the main entrance, while the station called Père Lachaise, on both lines 2 and 3. The cemetery is near the Museo de Edith Piaf which is maintained by a friend. It is in her original apartment. At the cemetery I wanted to find the graves of the following which are all buried there. These include Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Alice B Toklas and Gertrude Stein, Simone Signoret, Sarah Bernhardt and  Maria Callas. I accomplished my mission.

In NYC and its surrounding boroughs there are many well known individuals buried.


Where is famous magician, Harry Houdini buried? He is buried in New York City which was his home for most of his life until his death in 1926. The cemetery is across the river in Queens, near the Brooklyn border. It is very private cemetery and none are allowed in unless they are related to those died and are buried in that cemetery. I know on Halloween ( the day he died Oct 31, 1926)  many gather at his grave site- but where is it ?

There are many cemeteries in Queens and Brooklyn. " Come up and see me sometime.", Miss Mae West is buried in Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn with her family members. She died in her Los Angeles home, but her remains are in her birthplace, NYC.

Until tomorrow...