USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Cambridge > History of the cemetery of Mount Auburn. > Part 2
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HISTORY OF
twenty-five feet above the level of Charles River, and commands from its summit one of the finest prospects which can be obtained in the environs of Boston. On one side is the city in full view, connected at its extremities with Charlestown and Roxbury. The serpentine course of Charles River, with the cultivated hills and fields rising beyond it, and having the Blue Hills of Milton in the distance, occupies another portion of the landscape. The village of Cambridge, with the venerable edifices of Harvard University, are situated about a mile to the eastward. On the north, at a very small distance, Fresh Pond ap- pears, a handsome sheet of water, finely diversi- fied by its woody and irregular shores. Country seats and cottages seen in various directions, and especially those on the elevated land at Water- town, add much to the picturesque effect of the scene. It is proposed to erect on the summit of Mount Auburn, a Tower, after some classic model, of sufficient height to rise above the tops of the surrounding trees. This will serve the double purpose of a landmark to identify the spot from a distance, and of an observatory commanding an uninterrupted view of the country around it. From the foot of this monument will be seen in
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detail the features of the landscape, as they are successively presented through the different vistas which have been opened among the trees ; while from its summit, a magnificent and unbroken panorama, embracing one of the most delightful tracts in New England, will be spread out be- neath the eye. Not only the contiguous country, but the harbor and bay of Boston, with their ships and islands, and, in a clear atmosphere, the distant mountains of Wachusett, and proba- bly even of Monadnock, will be comprehended within the range of vision.
The grounds of the Cemetery have been laid out with intersecting avenues, so as to render every part of the woods accessible. These aven- ues are curved and variously winding in their course, so as to be adapted to the natural in- equalities of the surface. By this arrangement, the greatest economy of the land is produced, combining at the same time the picturesque effect of landscape gardening. Over the more level portions, the avenues are about twenty feet wide, and are suitable for carriage roads. The more broken and precipitous parts are approached by foot-paths, about six feet in width. These passage-ways are to be smoothly gravelled and
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planted on both sides with flowers and ornamental shrubs. Lots of ground, containing each three hundred square feet, are set off, as family burial places, at suitable distances on the sides of the avenues and paths. The perpetual right of inclos- ing and of using these lots as places of sepulture, is conveyed to the purchasers of them, by the Horticultural Society. It is confidently expected that many of the proprietors will, without delay, proceed to erect upon their lots such monuments and appropriate structures as will give to the place a part of the solemnity and beauty which it is destined ultimately to acquire.
It has been voted to procure, or construct, a receiving tomb in Boston, and another at Mount Auburn, at which, if desired, funerals may ter- minate, and in which the remains of the deceased may be deposited, until such time as the friends shall choose to direct their removal to the Ceme- tery ; this period, however, not to exceed six months.
The principal entrance to Mount Auburn will be through a lofty Egyptian gateway, which it is proposed to erect on the main road, at the com- mencement of the Central Avenue. Another entrance or gateway is provided on the cross-
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road at the eastern foot of the hill. Whenever the funds of the corporation shall justify the ex- pense, it is proposed that a small Grecian or Gothic Temple shall be erected on a conspicuous eastern eminence, which in reference to this allotment has received the prospective name of Temple Hill .*
As the designation and conveyance of the lots requires that they should be described with refer- ence to places bearing fixed appellations, it has been found necessary to give names to the avenues, foot-paths, hills, &c. The names which have been adopted, were suggested chiefly by natural objects and obvious associations. Taken in connection with the printed plan, they will be found sufficient to identify any part of the ground, without the probability of mistake."
The avenues and paths of Mount Auburn were laid out by a Sub-Committee, consisting of Messrs. Dearborn, Bigelow, and Brimmer. They were made, as far as possible, to conform to the natural face of the ground. Curved or winding courses were generally adopted, both for pic- turesque effect, and for easy approach to the various lots. The avenues for carriages were made
* Now occupied by lots. The Chapel is placed elsewhere.
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about eighteen feet wide, but the footpaths about five feet ; the lots being set back six feet from the path or avenue. The standard or minimum size of a lot, necessary to constitute the owner a proprietor in the Corporation, was fixed by the Trustees at not less than three hundred square feet, or twenty feet by fifteen, which size has never been changed.
The labor of clearing the avenues, &c., and grading the ground, occupied most of the season. Gen. Dearborn zealously devoted himself nearly the whole of this time to the examination of the ground, the laying out of roads, and superintend- ing the workmen. He also transplanted from his own nurseries a large collection of healthy, young forest trees, which he distributed through the entire front of the Cemetery. A part of these have since been moved and re-arranged, constituting one of the most beautiful ornaments of the place. On this occasion, the Garden and Cemetery Com- mittee, on motion of Mr. Brimmer, Dec. 2d, 1831, -
Voted, - " That, in consideration of the very acceptable services rendered by Gen. Dearborn, at Mount Auburn, and for the assiduity he has manifested in carrying into effect the purposes and
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designs of the Committee, that the lot selected by him in the grounds appropriated to the Cemetery, be presented to him, in behalf of the proprietors, and that the same shall be conveyed to him and his heirs in the manner prescribed by the Rules and Regulations of the Association, as a gratuity, and that Mr. Cook be requested to notify him of the same."
At a meeting of the Garden and Cemetery Committee, Nov. 3d, 1831, it was voted that Dr. Bigelow be authorized to have a plan of the ground lithographed, and to give names to such ponds, avenues, or places as require them; also to alter any names now affixed. In the execution of this commission, similar to one previously ordered by the sub-committee, the names of trees, shrubs, and plants were mostly adopted, to distinguish the paths and avenues, and this method has since been followed, with occasional deviations, made to gratify the desire of parties interested. A plan of Mount Auburn, by Mr. Alexander Wadsworth, was at this meeting submitted and accepted, and afterwards lithographed on a reduced scale.
At the same meeting it was voted to permit single interments to be made in the ground by persons not proprietors. The inclosure, since called
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ST. JAMES' lot, on Cypress Avenue, was shortly after set off for the purpose, and inclosed with a slight fence. At a more recent period, after this repository had become full, another inclosure, called ST. JOHN'S lot, was laid out on Fir Avenue, in 1848. The original charge for single interments was ten dollars, which was afterwards increased to twelve, with an additional charge of fifty cents for a stone bearing a number corresponding with the name of the occupant recorded in a book kept for the purpose. Adopted Sept. 1st, 1856.
About one hundred lots having been surveyed, it was voted, in 1831, to offer at auction to pro- prietors, for a premium, the right of choice among the lots laid out. Liberal bids were made at this auction, and a considerable sum was the result. The largest bid was $100, by Mr. Samuel Apple- ton, and the next, $50, by Mr. Benjamin Adams. The whole proceeds of the sale, after deducting auction expenses, as it appears from the Treasurer's books, were $944.92.
The original price of lots was sixty dollars for three hundred square feet, being twenty cents per foot ; and a certain number of lots were kept sur- veyed, in anticipation of sales, at this price. But it was voted, Nov. 3d, 1831, that, "if an applicant
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choose to have a new lot assigned to him, the Committee may, if they see fit, assign to him a new lot, on his paying ten dollars additional to his former dues." The addition was afterwards in- creased to 820. The price of a surveyed lot was increased, in 1834, to $65; in 1836, to $80; in 1844, to $100; and in 1854, to $150, - at which it now remains, with the exception that for certain choice lots a higher price is required. This pro- gressive increase of price has been founded on the increased value of the Cemetery, and the differ- ence in interest to early purchasers.
March 6, 1832. A subscription having been raised, by ladies in Boston, for the purpose of erecting a monument to Miss Hannah Adams, it was voted that the Committee on Surveys appro- priate a portion of land for the purpose of deposit- ing her remains; and, Sept. 2d, the Treasurer was ordered to pay $35 for an iron fence around her monument. This was the first monument erected in Mount Auburn Cemetery. The first interment was that of a child of Mr. James Boyd, on Moun- tain Avenue, July 6th, 1832. The second was that of Mrs. Mary Hastings, July 12th, of the same year.
May -, 1832. Messrs. Cook & Bond were a
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Committee to decide upon the form of a temporary fence to enclose the whole ground at Mount Au- burn. A contract was soon afterwards made with Mr. Leonard Stone to erect a wooden fence, of rough sawed pales, for which it appears the whole amount paid him was $2,636.65. This fence was standing till 1844, when it began to be superseded by the present iron fence.
THE GATEWAY.
The funds of the Corporation being thought adequate to the erection of a wooden gateway, with some reference to ornament, at a meeting of the Garden and Cemetery Committee, Sept 1st, 1832, it was voted, -" That the model for a gate- way and lodges, produced by Dr. Bigelow, be adopted, and that Gen. Dearborn, Dr. Bigelow, and Mr. Brimmer, be a Committee to cause the gate and lodges to be constructed of wood agree- ably to said model." This model was intended as a pattern for a corresponding structure, to be after- wards executed in stone, when the Corporation should be able to meet the expense. A contract was made with Mr. M. P. Brazee, of Cambridge- port, to build a gate on this plan for $1,366. This
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MOUNT AUBURN CEMETERY.
wooden gate, painted in imitation of granite, stood until 1842, when, at a meeting of the Trustees, Sept. 27th, and in pursuance of the Report of a Committee of the Trustees, it was voted, - "That the Committee on Lots - Messrs. Bigelow, Curtis, and Parker - be empowered to contract with Octavius T. Rogers, of Quincy, for the building of a granite gateway at Mount Auburn, and to pay for the same nine thousand five hundred dol- lars." The Report alluded to provided for the reproduction, in stone, of a gate and lodges having " substantially the same form, model, and dimen- sions as the present (wooden) gate and lodges." The Committee, after application to various granite contractors in Quincy, had found no one, except Mr. Rogers, who would undertake to make and raise the cap, or cornice stone, in a single piece. Mr. Rogers completed his contract in a prompt and satisfactory manner, the stone cap being raised to its place with screws on wooden frames. To prevent accident to the corners a thick bed of mortar was laid on the stone next below it, which left, when finished, a large and unseemly joint between the two principal stones. The Trustees voted, Sept. 16th, not to accept the gate with this blemish ; and the mortar was removed by the con-
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HISTORY OF
tractor, with some difficulty, by sawing it out. The gate was then accepted.
The gate is in the Egyptian style, its height being twenty-five feet, and the whole length, including the lodge, sixty feet. The piers or posts are four feet square, the entrance ten feet wide, and the greatest length of the cornice twenty-four feet. Two obelisks are connected with the two lodges by a curved, iron fence. The outline of the gate is mostly taken from some of the best examples in Denderah and Karnac, in which the piers are vertical, and the curve of the cornice vertical in its lower half. The banded cylinder, the foliage of the cornice, and the winged globe, are Egyptian. On the latter a lotus flower is turned over, so as to conceal the head of the fabu- lous animal with which the ancient examples are usually defaced. The size of the stones, and the solidity of the structure, entitle it to a stability of a thousand years.
On the outside of the gate is this inscription :
THEN SHALL THE DUST RETURN TO THE EARTH AS IT WAS, AND THE SPIRIT SHALL RETURN UNTO GOD WHO GAVE IT.
On the opposite side :
MOUNT AUBURN CONSECRATED
SEPTEMBER 24TH, 1831.
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In a year after the consecration of Mount Au- burn Cemetery, the success of the enterprise being considered no longer doubtful, it was deemed de- sirable to secure the addition of about twenty-four acres of land, lying on the westerly side of the first purchase, and belonging to David Stone and others, and to Ann Cutter. With this view, it was voted, Sept. 24th, 1832, that "it is expedient to borrow five thousand dollars to be reimbursed, with interest, out of the first proceeds of cemetery lots, and to be applied to the purchase of land lying on the west side of the Garden and Ceme- tery, and to the making of improvements in the Mount Auburn estate." This is believed to be the only instance, in the history of Mount Auburn, of a loan being authorized on the part of the Society or Corporation. The proposed land was purchased on credit, with notes, secured by mortgage, of the land acquired, and no lots were sold within it until this incumbrance was removed. The Corporation thus obtained about twenty-four acres of valuable land, the subsequent sale of which has been an im- portant element in its prosperity. The balance of account soon appeared on the other side, and on April 14th, 1836, we find a vote, " that the Treas- urer be instructed to invest from five to seven
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HISTORY OF
thousand dollars of the funds of this Corporation in some safe and profitable security." Since that time the Treasury has never been without a large surplus at the end of the year, sometimes amount- ing to $40,000, and upwards.
The accompanying plan, by Mr. Alexander Wadsworth, represents the Mount Auburn land as it existed previously to 1832. Most of the lots laid down had been purchased by Mr. Brimmer, at different times, and were, by him, conveyed to the Horticultural Society, in a general deed, dated Jan. 10th, 1832. But the following additional lots were subsequently purchased by the Society or Corporation from other parties : The lot, marked Cutter, about nine acres, was conveyed by Ann Cutter, Oct. 6th, 1832. The lot, marked D. Stone, about seventeen acres, by David Stone and David Stone, guardian, Jan. 13, 1833. The lot, marked Gould, two acres and a quarter, was purchased at auction by Mr. Gould, one of the Trustees, and by him immediately conveyed to the Corporation, Dec. 20, 1844. The " Stone Farm," about sixteen acres, was not added till 1854, when it was conveyed to the Corporation, by Mr. J. B. Dana, as hereafter shown.
By the surveys and estimates of Mr. Wads-
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: 29
MOUNT AUBURN CEMETERY.
worth, it appears that the whole land now owned and used as a Cemetery by the Corporation of Mount Auburn, is a little short of one hundred and thirty acres. Certain parcels situated east of the road, which is now called Coolidge Avenue, appear to have been conveyed by the Corporation, at different times, to Winchester, Brazee, and other parties. One piece of low land was con- veyed to Josiah Coolidge, in consideration of a ditch to be made by him, with the perpetual right of drainage through his land to Charles River.
The subject of admission to the Cemetery has, at different times, been a source of perplexity to the Trustees. At first, promiscuous admittance was allowed to persons on foot, on horseback, and in carriages. But, in a short time, great incon- venience was felt from the number of persons, in pursuit of pleasure, who rode or drove recklessly through the grounds, to the detriment of the paths and the annoyance of other visitors. At a meet- ing, April 10th, 1832, it was voted that "no horses or carriages, except those attending on funerals, will be admitted into the grounds of Mount Au- burn." On the 29th of the same month this measure was modified by a vote " that the pro- prietors of lots in the Cemetery be admitted into
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HISTORY OF
the grounds with their vehicles, and that tickets entitling them and their families to admission be sent to them, which tickets shall not be transfer- able, and shall be available for the present year." Regulations were also prescribed to prevent fast driving, and to insure the proper fastening of horses, &c. These Regulations have mainly con- tinued in force to the present time, except that discretionary power has sometimes been given to the Gate-keeper to admit strangers ; but the abuse of this privilege, and the influx of improper per- sons, have caused the Rule to be rescinded, and tickets are now required of all persons, except foot passengers.
February 1, 1834. It was voted that Mr. Bond and Mr. Curtis be a Committee to prepare a Catalogue of lots and proprietors' names for publication. This was the first regular Catalogue published. Catalogues were afterwards printed in 1835, 1838, 1841, 1846, and 1857.
As early as 1834, it became apparent that the interests of the Horticultural Society and those of the proprietors of Cemetery lots were not identical. The question of division of the proceeds of sales between two objects, - that of defraying the ex- penses of the Society on the one hand, and that
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MOUNT AUBURN CEMETERY.
of the improvement of Mount Auburn on the other, - was not always easy of adjustment. On the question of legal and moral right, it was found that the Horticultural Society held the fee of the land, and that to them was due whatever credit belonged to the inception of the undertaking. On the other hand, it appeared that the number of lot holders was rapidly increasing; that from them had been derived most of the funds of the estab- lishment ; and that, from their condition of mem- bership, they would soon have a controlling vote in the affairs of the Society. Considerable warmth of feeling was elicited among the advocates of the two parties ; and it became evident that a peaceful arrangement was not likely to be made, except by a sale of Mount Auburn, by the Horticultural Society, to a new Corporation, to be composed of the holders of lots.
For this purpose a Committee was appointed, consisting of Judge Story, Messrs. Charles P. Curtis, Elijah Vose, and Marshall P. Wilder. This Committee held several somewhat excited sessions without arriving at any agreement, and were near breaking up their conference without any practical result, when a compromise appears to have been effected by the conciliatory efforts of
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HISTORY OF
Mr. Wilder, one of the Committee, and the par- ties came to an agreement of the following basis, mainly : that the proceeds of all sales of lots shall be divided annually between the Horticultural Society and the new Corporation in such manner that, after deducting fourteen hundred dollars for the expenses of the Cemetery, then one fourth part of the gross proceeds should be paid to the Horti- cultural Society, and the remaining three fourths should be retained by the Mount Auburn Cor- poration for its own use. The result of this amicable arrangement, afterwards duly accepted and ratified, has been highly auspicious to both parties concerned. The Horticultural Society has become opulent and prosperous, as it is useful to the public ; while the proprietors of Mount Auburn have been able to expend nearly three hundred thousand dollars in the preservation, improvement, embellishment, and enlargement of their Cemetery.
Immediate application was made to the Legisla- ture for an act incorporating the proprietors of the Cemetery, and a deed of conveyance, in which were recited the conditions of the act, was after- wards made out from the Horticultural Society to the newly incorporated proprietors.
It is somewhat remarkable that, at the date of
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these important transactions, a gap of more than three months appears in the records of the time. Neither the record books of the Horticultural Society, of the Garden and Cemetery Committee, nor of the Proprietors of Mount Auburn, contain the names of the Committee, nor their report to the Society. The record book of the Horticul- tural Society has the following statement : - " A report was made on the 23d of January, 1835, by Judge Story, to the Horticultural Society, and accepted, as appears by the record of that day, comprising the agreement finally made between these parties. This report cannot be found. In its absence, therefore, the views of the parties must be sought principally in an act of the Legis- lature, of March 31, 1835, and a vote of the Society, June 6, 1835, and also in the deed to the Mount Auburn Proprietors." At the top of the same page it is stated that, " The following por- tions of records are mostly taken from the New England Farmer, and are entered here in pur- suance of a vote passed by the Society."
The act of incorporation having been assented to by the proprietors, under their individual signa- tures, a meeting was called by the persons named in the act on the 21st of April, 1835, at which the
3
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HISTORY OF
Hon. John Davis was chosen Moderator, and Charles P. Curtis, Esq., Secretary. Judge Story was appointed a Committee to prepare such By- Laws as he should deem necessary. It was voted to proceed to the choice, by ballot, of nine Trus- tees, and the following gentlemen were declared to be elected, viz. : Joseph Story, Samuel Apple- ton, George Bond, Jacob Bigelow, Benjamin A. Gould, Charles Brown, Charles P. Curtis, James Read, and Joseph P. Bradlee. It was then voted that the Trustees be authorized to procure and accept a conveyance from the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, of all the lands, tenements, and personal estate held by them in Cambridge, Watertown, or elsewhere, appertaining to the Garden and Cemetery of Mount Auburn.
At an adjourned meeting, April 23d, 1835, the Hon. Joseph Story was chosen President ; George Bond, Esq., Treasurer ; and Benjamin R. Curtis, Esq., Secretary. The salary of the Secretary was fixed at one hundred dollars. Messrs. Bond, Bigelow, and C. P. Curtis were appointed a Committee on laying out and discontinuing lots. Messrs. Story and Curtis were appointed a Com- mittee on Regulations concerning visitors, &c. Messrs. Bigelow and Story a Committee to devise a seal for the Corporation.
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In September, 1838, Mr. George W. Brimmer died at Florence, in Italy. The following obit- uary notice appeared in the Boston Daily Adver- tiser of the time : -
" Although for several years past the subject of this notice has been absent, with the exception of short intervals, from his home, yet the image of his presence, and the sound of his familiar voice, seem to us as but of yesterday. A vivid remem- brance of our past gratification accompanies and enhances the sadness attendant on its loss.
Mr. Brimmer, after the termination of his academical studies, in 1803, directed his attention to mercantile pursuits, to which occupation he continued attached for several years. But a natural and highly cultivated taste for the fine arts laid strong claims on his attention and time, and to these elegant pursuits he devoted a large portion of that leisure which his fortune and posi- tion enabled him to command. In painting he was both a personal proficient and an accomplished connoisseur, distinguished by the chasteness and almost the severity of his discriminating taste. To architecture he directed a large share of his attention, and has left practical results to attest the beauty of his conceptions. Trinity Church
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