Sharp Burial Ground

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Tombstone of John O'Neil with other surrounding graves

The Sharp Burial Ground , also known as Albany Avenue Cemetery , is a small cemetery on Albany Avenue ( New York State Route 32 ) in Kingston , New York in the United States. It was used in the mid-19th century after the churchyards became too small to accommodate more graves, but before the larger, park-like cemeteries became common. After their establishment, many graves were relocated to transfer the buried to the larger family graves there. Nevertheless, the graves of two former members of the US House of Representatives can still be found here .

The cemetery contains some interesting examples of cemetery art from that period, such as a large memorial stone to the cemetery founder, Edward O'Neil. It was neglected for most of the 20th century and suffered from the effects of time, but was then cleaned up and restored in the 1990s by a local conservation association. In 2002, the cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Historic and Architectural Resources of Albany Avenue, Kingston, Ulster County Multiple Property Submission (MPS) . It is the only cemetery in Ulster County on the National Register.

description

The cemetery is on the east side of Albany Avenue, where it turns northeast about 120 meters east of the intersection with Interstate 587 and New York State Route 28 . This is a roughly 8500 m² rectangular plot of land, the southern border of which is formed by a former railway line and is slightly curved in a south-westerly direction. To the north and east, the cemetery is bordered by apartment buildings on Albany Avenue and Elmendorf Street.

The neighborhood is formed by residential developments; most of these houses date from the end of the 19th century. Four houses in this neighborhood - the houses of John Smith , George J. Smith, and Jacob Ten Broeck, and the house at 184 Albany Avenue are also on the National Register.

An iron fence with a gate in the middle runs along the sidewalk. This construction is modern and is therefore not considered a contributing property to the historical character of the cemetery. The cemetery area is flat and has only a few tall trees and plants. The tombstones are arranged in irregular groupings, there is no evidence of a grid or planning. Two major monuments stand out: a tall, vase-like headstone for Edward O'Neil and an obelisk for Abraham Hasbrouck , a former MP in New York's Parliament and the United States' House of Representatives.

history

Records and tombstones suggest that part of the site was used as a cemetery as early as 1810; The site was formally used for this purpose from 1832. At that time the cemetery was measured by Edward O'Neil, who laid out the cemetery for 210 graves. The grave areas increased in size from the rear part to the entrance - there were areas of one ares reserved for the most important faiths in the city.

The cemetery is typical of a cemetery from the post-settler era. The colonial churchyards were now full and with Kingston's rapid growth at that time, a park-like cemetery would have taken up too much space. Cemeteries like the Sharp Burial Ground were mostly on the edge of the settlements and were large enough and sensibly planned to accommodate burials in the foreseeable future.

Some of the graves are examples of the trends in cemetery art of American Protestantism in the mid-19th century. O'Neil's own gravestone from 1856 is vase-shaped with a carved laurel wreath to commemorate him. Willows and urns, which stand for mourning and the soul of the deceased, can also be found on many graves from this period.

The last burials in the cemetery took place in the 1870s. At that time, the larger park cemeteries Montrepose and Wiltwyck were opened, which were a little further from the city at that time, and many families whose relatives were buried on the Sharp Burial Ground had them reburied in family graves in these new cemeteries. It was about a decade later when Nathaniel Bartlett Sylvester stated in his county story that the old Sharp Burial Ground was "very handsome," but it appeared that the cemetery was being neglected due to the relocation of many graves.

This decline continued until 1995, when the Friends of Historic Kingston (FOHK), a local group dedicated to the preservation dedicated and historic buildings, structures and sites maintains, cleared the land and restored the remaining grave stones. The fence and the gate were created on their initiative. The group continues to maintain the cemetery.

Notable burials

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c d e John Bonafide: National Register of Historic Places nomination, Sharp Burial Ground . New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation . June 2002. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
  2. ^ Activities ( English ) Friends of Historic Kingston. 2008. Archived from the original on July 8, 2008. Retrieved January 15, 2010: “ In agreement with the City, we are restoring and maintain this 19th century burial ground located on Albany Avenue. "
  3. ↑ HASBROUCK, Abraham Joseph, (1773-1845) ( English ) Biographical Directory of the US Congress. Retrieved January 15, 2010.
  4. ^ DE WITT, Jacob Hasbrouck, (1784 - 1867) ( English ) Biographical Directory of the US Congress. Retrieved January 15, 2010.

Web links

Coordinates: 41 ° 55 ′ 58 ″  N , 74 ° 0 ′ 30 ″  W.