Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1886-12-31
GREENWOOD CEMETERY
CHANGES THAT HAVE BEEN MADE
IN THE GREAT GRAVEYARD.

The Cemetery Will Be Practically Closed
in twenty-five Years Hence-Best Mar
BILE for Monuments and Wood for
Coffins-Tree Roots.
Superintendent L. J. Wells, of Greenwood
cemetery, is pleasant voiced man with gray
hair, who has had the care of New York and
Brooklyn's great repository for the dead for
many years He has seen Greenwood grow
from vacant, unimproved plot of 200 acres
to tract of surprising beauty, peopled with
nearly $50, 900 of dead, and covering nearly
square mile of territory Mr.. Wells con-
siders Greenwood the largest and finest
cemetery in the world. 1t was chartered in
1888, and the first burial was that of Sarah
Hannah, of this city, on Sept. 5, 1910. Now
there are more than 236, 100 bodies buried
there
els the cemetery large enough now:" asked
the reporter.
"It is large enough to furnish lots for the
next twenty-five years, and after that we
don't care. The lots will be large enough to
accommodate their owners for years to come,
and we shall have a surplus large enough to
keep the grounds in order forever"
"Then Greenwood will be practically closed
quarter of century hence"
"That is the idea exactly. 1t is large
enough now to be readily handled. Our fund
for the permanent care of the cemetery is be-
ing added to steadily, and now amounts to
1851, S9022. Our trust fund for the care of
special graves is already large one, and we
have had the cemetery boundaries fixed by
the streets and boulevards of the city, SO that
the present boundaries will be permanent.
All that will be done to the grounds after
1910, then, will be to keep them looking
beautiful
NOT A STOCK COMPANY.
stYou see, the Greenwood Cemetery corpo-
ration is not stock company, as most SINH
lar associations are It is a trust company,
and no one gets any money out of it save
the employees. All that remains after the
annual expenses are paid is added to the sur
plus fund that is being put away for the
future care of the cemetery. Every lot
owner is a stakeholder. There are over
$4,000 of them. Every Improvement has
been made upon the grounds. We have
stone crushers, artesian wells, thorough sew
erage, and have just finished new reservoir
to hold 637, 600 gallons, that stands on Mount
Washington, the highest point on Long
Island, and is about 220 feet above tide
water. This stores the water pumped from
our wells, and gives greater and much
needed pressure. A new eight-inch water
main will be laid this fall, taking the place
of one of our four inches. The changes in
Greenwood since I came here in 1913 have
been marvellous. am the only one left of
the attaches who were here then"
"What is the most durable material for
monuments~
Ozark blue granite, from Quincy, Mass.
Bronze comes next but it is costly, and it is
being adulterated so much now that some of
it is poor There has been great revolution
in the gravestone business People have
found out that blue granite is the best stone
to wear, and they are using nothing else
The rage for Italian marble began to die out
ten years ago. There are veins in it which
are imperceptible when the work is new, but
which exposure develops, and then the work
of ruin begins. We do not allow Enclosures
to be made of it at all, and the best stone
cutters will not recommend it to customers.
All Enclosures now are required to be of
granite coping, or granite posts and bars of
either galvanized iron Or brass. No iron
chains or hedges are allowed. This course
will keep the grounds from Disagreement in
after years. 1t is the result of dearly
bought experience. Brownstone? No, there
hasn't been any brownstone used here for
twenty years. 1t is not durable Scotch
granite, too, doesn't stand as we expected it
would. Light granite turns yellow with
age"
ToMBs OUT OF REPAIR
"Do tombs ever fall in?"
"Some of the old ones get out of repair. In
the early days people were allowed to build
them of brick and in the most imperfect man
ner Now we require that the tops of all
tonbs shall be a thick granite slab, so as to
shed water. The back and corners have to
be solid pieces also, and the walls have to be
two feet thick with no upright joints
William s. Ridabock, of New York, is erect
ing one down the avenue built after the
manner I have just described that will stand
for ages 1t will cost $40, 00On
sWill collins that are made now last as long
as those formerly used?"
II think the old fashioned mahogany cof-
fins would outlast by far almost any other
coffin. Many Of the collins that they sell
now are simply glued together-not even
nailed. We've learned this from experience.
| After bodies have been left in the receiving
vault a few weeks the glue is dissolved by
| moisture and the collins come apart Metal
lie collins are readily affected by heat and
cold and hence spring and break; that is,
! they do in receiving vaults.
"Does wooden box protect coffin?"
@On the contrary, if made of pine it will
warp quickly and catch and retain water,
Fastening decay. A box of chestnut will last
longer than anything else underground.
| Even in mud and water it will hold together
| for years"
(which are the best woods for cofins2"
| "Chestnut and black walnut are the most
| durable. But as long as a body is to remain
where it is buried, it makes little difference
| what it is encased in"
| "Do trees push their roots into graves as
much as is popularity supposed"
"Some trees are bad for commemorative
that have in mind particularly. They are
the ailanthus and the white leaved maple.
Neither of these varieties is allowed in Green
wood because the roots spread so rapidly
| New York Tribune.