Architectural style Gothic Revival Area 140 ha Year built 1845 | NRHP Reference # 76001440 Phone +1 513-681-7526 Added to NRHP 13 May 1976 | |
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Around the town spring grove cemetery
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 and is recognized as a US National Historic Landmark.
Contents
- Around the town spring grove cemetery
- The spring grove cemetery
- History
- Description
- Notable burials
- SpongeBob SquarePants headstone controversy
- References
The spring grove cemetery
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. The numerous springs and groves suggested the name "Spring Grove". On December 1, 1844 Salmon P. Chase and others prepared the Articles of Incorporation. The cemetery was designed by Howard Daniels and formally chartered on January 21, 1845. The first burial took place on September 1, 1845.
In 1855, Adolph Strauch, a renowned landscape architect, was hired to beautify the grounds. His sense and layout of the "garden cemetery", made of lakes, trees and shrubs, is what visitors today still see. On March 29, 2007, the cemetery was designated a National Historic Landmark. The Spring Grove Cemetery Chapel is listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places.
Description
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, 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.
SpongeBob SquarePants headstone controversy
On October 23, 2013, the staff at Spring Grove Cemetery removed a SpongeBob SquarePants headstone from the resting spot of U.S. Army Corporal Kimberly Walker only one day after her funeral. The headstone and another next to it for future use by Walker's twin sister, Kara, were removed after the family had been given copyright permission to use them. In February 2014, the cemetery and Walker's family reached an agreement, and the original headstones were reinstalled with the addition of full granite slabs to shield them from people passing by.