.gif)
Hillside Cemetery (Middletown, New York)
Encyclopedia
Hillside Cemetery is located on Mulberry Street in Middletown
, New York, United States. It was designed by Calvert Vaux
in the rural cemetery
style, later noted for his collaboration on Central Park
with Frederick Law Olmsted
, and opened in 1861. There are several thousand graves, some with excellent examples of 19th-century funerary art
.
Many of Middletown's prominent citizens of the late 19th century were buried there, including three Civil War
winners of the Medal of Honor
and one former congressman. In 1994 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
.
It is built into a hillside that rises sharply to the north. The slope is cut into a series of undulating bluffs to accommodate the graves and curving roads around the cemetery. There is a pond near the upper end of the property and the remains of a second at the lower end. A tributary
of Monhagen Brook runs across the property from the northwest to the east. There are groves of mature shade trees.
At the front gate is a Gothic Revival stone office building. It is a contributing resource
to the National Register listing, but is no longer used. Instead most administrative functions are handled at a more modern maintenance garage. Scattered throughout the cemetery are various mausolea and other memorials.
, which followed the model of Mount Auburn Cemetery
in Massachusetts by setting graves and monuments in a pastoral natural setting, in 1847. Under that act, the Hillside Cemetery Association was formed in 1860. Later that year it purchased 50 acres (202,343 m²) of farmland in Middletown, which had only recently incorporated
as a village, for its cemetery.
Calvert Vaux
was hired to design the landscape soon afterwards. An English immigrant
, he had worked for Andrew Jackson Downing
of Newburgh, whose ideas about a more naturally sympathetic architecture guided much home construction in mid-19th century America. Two years earlier, Vaux and another Downing disciple, Frederick Law Olmsted
, had won New York City's design competition to create Central Park
. This fame followed Vaux to Middletown when he began work on the cemetery the next year.
It was consecrated
on August 8, 1861. Vaux's Picturesque
plan was followed exactly, but a planned observation tower
was never built. The new cemetery soon gained a representative collection of contemporary funerary art
. Monuments and memorials showed the influence of the Egyptian Revival and the sarcophagus
of Scipio Barbatus. Decorative motifs such as garlands
, angels and urns. Many headstones have carved female figures, symbolizing different things depending on what she holds. Two monuments have carved granite
statues of Hope
.
In 1930 the stone office building at the front entrance was built. It fell into disuse after three decades, and thus the modern garage was built in 1992. Vaux's lower pond has also been mostly drained.
Middletown, Orange County, New York
Middletown is a city in Orange County, New York, United States. It lies in New York's Hudson Valley region, near the Wallkill River and the foothills of the Shawangunk Mountains. Middletown is situated between Port Jervis and Newburgh, New York. The city's population was 25,388 at the 2000 census...
, New York, United States. It was designed by Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
in the rural cemetery
Rural cemetery
The rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of burial ground that uses landscaping in a park-like setting.As early as 1711 the architect Sir Christopher Wren had advocated the creation of burial grounds on the outskirts of town, "inclosed with a strong Brick Wall, and having a walk round, and...
style, later noted for his collaboration on Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
with 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 opened in 1861. There are several thousand graves, some with excellent examples of 19th-century funerary art
Funerary art
Funerary art is any work of art forming, or placed in, a repository for the remains of the dead. Tomb is a general term for the repository, while grave goods are objects—other than the primary human remains—which have been placed inside...
.
Many of Middletown's prominent citizens of the late 19th century were buried there, including three Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
winners of the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
and one former congressman. In 1994 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Property
The cemetery is located in southeastern Middletown, a few blocks from the city's downtown. It is a 52 acres (21 ha) parcel built on the side of a hill. Mulberry Street is on the east, with woods to the north and west and a residential neighborhood on the north.It is built into a hillside that rises sharply to the north. The slope is cut into a series of undulating bluffs to accommodate the graves and curving roads around the cemetery. There is a pond near the upper end of the property and the remains of a second at the lower end. A tributary
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of Monhagen Brook runs across the property from the northwest to the east. There are groves of mature shade trees.
At the front gate is a Gothic Revival stone office building. It is a contributing resource
Contributing property
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing resource or contributing property is any building, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic district, listed locally or federally, significant...
to the National Register listing, but is no longer used. Instead most administrative functions are handled at a more modern maintenance garage. Scattered throughout the cemetery are various mausolea and other memorials.
History
New York provided for the creation of rural cemeteriesRural cemetery
The rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of burial ground that uses landscaping in a park-like setting.As early as 1711 the architect Sir Christopher Wren had advocated the creation of burial grounds on the outskirts of town, "inclosed with a strong Brick Wall, and having a walk round, and...
, which followed the model of Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery was founded in 1831 as "America's first garden cemetery", or the first "rural cemetery", with classical monuments set in a rolling landscaped terrain...
in Massachusetts by setting graves and monuments in a pastoral natural setting, in 1847. Under that act, the Hillside Cemetery Association was formed in 1860. Later that year it purchased 50 acres (202,343 m²) of farmland in Middletown, which had only recently incorporated
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
as a village, for its cemetery.
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
was hired to design the landscape soon afterwards. An English immigrant
English American
English Americans are citizens or residents of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England....
, he had worked for Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing was an American landscape designer, horticulturalist, and writer, a prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival style in the United States, and editor of The Horticulturist magazine...
of Newburgh, whose ideas about a more naturally sympathetic architecture guided much home construction in mid-19th century America. Two years earlier, Vaux and another Downing disciple, 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...
, had won New York City's design competition to create Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
. This fame followed Vaux to Middletown when he began work on the cemetery the next year.
It was consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
on August 8, 1861. Vaux's Picturesque
Picturesque
Picturesque is an aesthetic ideal introduced into English cultural debate in 1782 by William Gilpin in Observations on the River Wye, and Several Parts of South Wales, etc. Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty; made in the Summer of the Year 1770, a practical book which instructed England's...
plan was followed exactly, but a planned observation tower
Observation tower
An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision. They are usually at least tall and made from stone, iron, and wood. Many modern towers are also used as TV towers, restaurants, or churches...
was never built. The new cemetery soon gained a representative collection of contemporary funerary art
Funerary art
Funerary art is any work of art forming, or placed in, a repository for the remains of the dead. Tomb is a general term for the repository, while grave goods are objects—other than the primary human remains—which have been placed inside...
. Monuments and memorials showed the influence of the Egyptian Revival and the sarcophagus
Sarcophagus
A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
of Scipio Barbatus. Decorative motifs such as garlands
Garland (decoration)
A garland is a decorative wreath or cord, used at festive occasions, which can be hung round a person's neck, or on inanimate objects like Christmas trees. Originally garlands were made of flowers or leaves.-Etymology:...
, angels and urns. Many headstones have carved female figures, symbolizing different things depending on what she holds. Two monuments have carved granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
statues of Hope
Hope (virtue)
Hope is one of the three theological virtues in Christian tradition. Hope being a combination of the desire for something and expectation of receiving it, the virtue is hoping for Divine union and so eternal happiness...
.
In 1930 the stone office building at the front entrance was built. It fell into disuse after three decades, and thus the modern garage was built in 1992. Vaux's lower pond has also been mostly drained.
Notable burials
- Thomas D. Collins, 1847–1935. While serving as a sergeant in CompanyCompany (military unit)A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
H of the 143rd New York Infantry, captured a Confederate regimental flag on May 15, 1864, during the Battle of ResacaBattle of ResacaThe Battle of Resaca was part of the Atlanta Campaign of the American Civil War. The battle was waged in both Gordon and Whitfield counties, Georgia, from May 13 - 15, 1864. It ended inconclusively with the Confederate Army retreating. The engagement was fought between the Military Division of the...
. Awarded the Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
. - David Porter Dewitt, 1817–1889. BrevetBrevet (military)In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
brigadier generalBrigadier GeneralBrigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
in Union ArmyUnion ArmyThe Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
. - Nathan Mullock Hallock, 1844–1903. While serving as a privatePrivate (rank)A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
in Company K of the 124th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment124th New York Volunteer Infantry RegimentThe 124th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, commonly known as the Orange Blossoms, was a volunteer regiment from Orange County, New York, during the American Civil War. Formed in Goshen during the summer of 1862, The unit was officially mustered into United States Service on September 5, 1862,...
at Bristoe StationBattle of Bristoe StationThe Battle of Bristoe Station was fought on October 14, 1863, at Bristoe Station, Virginia, between Union forces under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren and Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill during the Bristoe Campaign of the American Civil War...
on October 14, 1863, he "at imminent peril saved from death or capture a disabled officer of his company by carrying him under a hot musketry fire, to a place of safety", for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1897. - Moses D. StiversMoses D. StiversMoses Dunning Stivers was a U.S. Representative from New York.Born near Beemerville, New Jersey, Stivers attended common and private schools and Mount Retirement Seminary in Wantage, New Jersey....
, 1828–1895. Served one term as U.S. Representative, from 1889–91. - Lewis Wisner, 1841–1906. First lieutenantFirst LieutenantFirst lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
in Company K, "while serving as an engineer officer voluntarily exposed himself to the enemy's fire" at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court HouseBattle of Spotsylvania Court HouseThe Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes simply referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania , was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Overland Campaign of the American Civil War. Following the bloody but inconclusive Battle of the Wilderness, Grant's army disengaged...
on May 12, 1864. Awarded the Medal of Honor.
External links
- List of burials at interment.net