Columbia Gardens Cemetery
Encyclopedia
The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is a cemetery located in the Ashton Heights Historic District of Arlington, Virginia
The cemetery was created by the Alexandria Park Association, incorporated in 1914 in Huntington, West Virginia
. The president of the association was Colonel Robert Dye, former superintendent of the Arlington National Cemetery
and its principal founder was principal founder Julius Broh.
In the proposal to the Arlington County Board, the Association indicated the intent to "make a place that will be attractive as a park and a credit to the county."
Having won approval from the County, in November 1917, the Association’s board of directors employed a landscape architect from Cleveland, Ohio, a Mr. Jenney, to prepare the design, specifications, and methods of procedure for operating a cemetery.
The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is an example of merging landscape design
and city planning based on the principles set down in the late 19th by designers such as Frederick Law Olmsted
and subsequently developed by the City Beautiful movement
. However as opposed to the linear plans advocated by City Beautiful for urban design, Jenney preferred a more rural cemetery design, with winding roads and natural landscape features.
The "park" initially encompassed nearly thirty-eight adjoining acres, with an option to purchase an additional thirty acres.
The Columbia Gardens Cemetery has been family operated for four generations. At present it is one of the few cemeteries in the Northern Virginia
area offering available burial sites with the option of an upright monument. Other options range from columbarium
niches to family mausoleum
s.
Upon entering the main gates on Arlington Boulevard, a main alley crosses a rose garden
beyond which lie the winding alleys of the cemetery, s a natural setting of dignity and grace for reflection on loved ones who have gone before.
The mausoleum in honor of Admiral of the Navy
George Dewey
, in which his body lay until its removal to the crypt of the Bethlehem Chapel of the Washington National Cathedral
, was removed in 1933 and is at present located near the entrance of the cemetery where it is used as a public receiving vault
Columbia Gardens is the only memorial company to employ a craftsman skilled in the almost lost art of hand-cut, V-tooled lettering. It also was the first to use on-premises diamond etching for highly detailed duplication of artwork and stencil press machines for more even and consistent lettering.
Columbia Gardens Memorials has crafted memorials for Joe Louis
, Matthew Henson
, Charles Bater “Tex” Thornton
and Michael J. Smith. The workshop has also cut the lettering for the United States Navy Memorial
.
The Cemetery
The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is located at the southern boundary of the Ashton Heights Historic District and is one of its most prominent features.The cemetery was created by the Alexandria Park Association, incorporated in 1914 in Huntington, West Virginia
Huntington, West Virginia
Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia, along the Ohio River. Most of the city is in Cabell County, for which it is the county seat. A small portion of the city, mainly the neighborhood of Westmoreland, is in Wayne County. Its population was 49,138 at...
. The president of the association was Colonel Robert Dye, former superintendent of the Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
and its principal founder was principal founder Julius Broh.
In the proposal to the Arlington County Board, the Association indicated the intent to "make a place that will be attractive as a park and a credit to the county."
Having won approval from the County, in November 1917, the Association’s board of directors employed a landscape architect from Cleveland, Ohio, a Mr. Jenney, to prepare the design, specifications, and methods of procedure for operating a cemetery.
The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is an example of merging landscape design
Landscape design
Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practised by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice landscape design bridges between landscape architecture and garden design.-Design scope:...
and city planning based on the principles set down in the late 19th by designers such as Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted was an American journalist, social critic, public administrator, and landscape designer. He is popularly considered to be the father of American landscape architecture, although many scholars have bestowed that title upon Andrew Jackson Downing...
and subsequently developed by the City Beautiful movement
City Beautiful movement
The City Beautiful Movement was a reform philosophy concerning North American architecture and urban planning that flourished during the 1890s and 1900s with the intent of using beautification and monumental grandeur in cities. The movement, which was originally associated mainly with Chicago,...
. However as opposed to the linear plans advocated by City Beautiful for urban design, Jenney preferred a more rural cemetery design, with winding roads and natural landscape features.
The "park" initially encompassed nearly thirty-eight adjoining acres, with an option to purchase an additional thirty acres.
The Columbia Gardens Cemetery has been family operated for four generations. At present it is one of the few cemeteries in the Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia consists of several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia, in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C...
area offering available burial sites with the option of an upright monument. Other options range from columbarium
Columbarium
A columbarium is a place for the respectful and usually public storage of cinerary urns . The term comes from the Latin columba and originally referred to compartmentalized housing for doves and pigeons .The Columbarium of Pomponius Hylas is a particularly fine ancient Roman example, rich in...
niches to family mausoleum
Mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
s.
Upon entering the main gates on Arlington Boulevard, a main alley crosses a rose garden
Rose garden
A Rose garden or Rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses. Designs vary tremendously and roses may be displayed alongside other plants or grouped by individual variety, colour or class in rose beds.-Origins of the rose...
beyond which lie the winding alleys of the cemetery, s a natural setting of dignity and grace for reflection on loved ones who have gone before.
The mausoleum in honor of Admiral of the Navy
Admiral of the Navy
Admiral of the navy is a senior-most rank of a naval service.Some navies use the term admiral of the navy as a title bestowed upon a fleet admiral or other senior naval official...
George Dewey
George Dewey
George Dewey was an admiral of the United States Navy. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War...
, in which his body lay until its removal to the crypt of the Bethlehem Chapel of the Washington National Cathedral
Washington National Cathedral
The Washington National Cathedral, officially named the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church located in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. Of neogothic design, it is the sixth-largest cathedral in the world, the second-largest in...
, was removed in 1933 and is at present located near the entrance of the cemetery where it is used as a public receiving vault
Notable burials
- Roy BuchananRoy BuchananRoy Buchanan was an American guitarist and blues musician. A pioneer of the Telecaster sound, Buchanan was a sideman and solo artist, with two gold albums early in his career, and two later solo albums that made it on to the Billboard chart. Despite never having achieved stardom, he is still...
(1939–1988) guitarist and bluesBluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician - Robert Carlyle Byrd (1917–2010) US SenatorUnited States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from West VirginiaWest VirginiaWest Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east... - Charles Noel Crosby (1876–1951) US Congressman from PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
- Marian Dobson Duffel (1918–2010) Foreign Service medical officer for the United States State Department
- Ernest Krikor Emurian (1912–2004) pastor of the Cherrydale United Methodist Church, composer of hymns, anthems and popular songs
- Edward Cunningham 'Eddie' FosterEddie FosterEdward Cunningham "Eddie" Foster , was a professional baseball player who played third base in the Major Leagues from 1910-1923. In his career he played for the New York Yankees, Washington Senators, Boston Red Sox, and St. Louis Browns.Foster was killed in a hit-and-run automobile accident in...
(1887–1937) Major LeagueMajor LeagueSee Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada.Major League may also refer to:-Sport:* Major League Baseball, the highest level of play in professional baseball in North America* Major League Cricket...
Baseball - Francis Eugene Worley (1908–1974) US CongressmanUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Texas - George N. SaegmullerGeorge N. SaegmullerGeorge N. Saegmuller was a German-born American inventor of many astronomical instruments and other mechanical devices.He attended technical schools in Erlangen and Nuremberg. In 1870 he moved to the United States, where he settled in Washington, DC and began working for a craftsman involved in...
' (1847–1934) – inventor of astronomical instrumentsAstronomyAstronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
The Columbia Gardens Memorials
The territory of the cemetery also hosts the Columbia Gardens Memorials, a workshop established in 1964. It specializes in crafting monument and is run by Ned R. Thomas and Robert Thomas, graduates of the Elberton Granite Institute in GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
Columbia Gardens is the only memorial company to employ a craftsman skilled in the almost lost art of hand-cut, V-tooled lettering. It also was the first to use on-premises diamond etching for highly detailed duplication of artwork and stencil press machines for more even and consistent lettering.
Columbia Gardens Memorials has crafted memorials for Joe Louis
Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow , better known as Joe Louis, was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949. He is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time...
, Matthew Henson
Matthew Henson
Matthew Alexander Henson was an African American explorer and associate of Robert Peary during various expeditions, the most famous being a 1909 expedition which it was discovered that he was the the first person to reach the Geographic North Pole.-Life:Henson was born on a farm in Nanjemoy,...
, Charles Bater “Tex” Thornton
Tex Thornton
Charles Bates "Tex" Thornton was an American business executive who was the founder of Litton Industries.-Biography:...
and Michael J. Smith. The workshop has also cut the lettering for the United States Navy Memorial
United States Navy Memorial
The United States Navy Memorial on Pennsylvania Avenue NW between 7th Street Northwest and 9th Street Northwest in Washington, D.C., honors those who have served or are currently serving in the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and the Merchant Marine....
.