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Inside Marble Cemetery
By
Jen Carlson
Published Nov 9, 2009
Modified Nov 9, 2009
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Nov 9, 2009
Modified Nov 9, 2009
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Photos by ScoutingNY
You've probably walked by the Marble Cemetery on 2nd Avenue before, but have you ever dared peek inside? The Scout recently took a closer look at the pretty commonly known, yet nearly hidden space (between 2nd and 3rd Streets), coming back with some amazing photos of what can be found once you get past the gate and down the narrow alleyway.
Marble Cemetery is actually "New York’s oldest non-sectarian cemetery, founded in 1831. Its first burial was for the child of one Dr. Post who died in 1830, and its 2,000th and final was for Charlie VanZandt in 1937. Many were for children below the age of 6." While the Dead House, which was a temporary holding spot for remains, was removed in 1955, the site still contains "156 underground vaults set 10 feet underground, each the size of a small room." Instead of headstones, you'll find tablets on a stone wall that denote burials.
The Scout raises an interesting point of how multi-million dollar plots of land in this city belong to "rotting remains of long dead New Yorkers," and how that fact is both mind-boggling and satisfying. Indeed! However some are turned into parks. If you'd like to check out the landmarked space, it's open on Sunday afternoons from April to October, and by appointment year round.
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2nd avenue
cemetery
marble cemetery
Scouting
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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