Mountain Grove Cemetery, Bridgeport

Last updated
Mountain Grove Cemetery
Ptbarnumgravemountaingrove.jpg
P. T. Barnum's gravestone at Mountain Grove
Mountain Grove Cemetery, Bridgeport
Details
Established1849
Location
CountryUnited States
Coordinates 41°10′19″N73°13′19″W / 41.172°N 73.222°W / 41.172; -73.222
TypePublic
Website www.mtgrovecemetery.org
Find a Grave Mountain Grove Cemetery

Mountain Grove Cemetery, Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States, was laid out in 1849 in the then popular rural cemetery design in a park-like, rural setting away from the center of the city.

Contents

The cemetery was founded by showman P. T. Barnum, who himself is buried there. [1] "The original grounds were surveyed and designed by Horatio Stone and Mr. [John] Moody," the cemetery's first superintendent. [2]

Tom Thumb's gravestone Tomthumbgravemountaingrove.JPG
Tom Thumb's gravestone

Notable interments

Notables interred here include:

Civil War monument

The cemetery includes a Civil War monument, Pro Patria. The granite stele monument with bronze plaque, raised in 1906 by the Bridgeport Elias Howe Grand Army of the Republic post and the State of Connecticut, is dedicated "IN LOVING MEMORY OF THOSE WHO DID NOT RETURN". The monument, by the Bridgeport sculptor Paul Winters Morris (1865–1916) includes bas-relief figures of soldiers with heads bowed. The monument is at the front of a plot marked by pyramids of cannonballs that contains the graves of about 83 Civil War veterans. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">P. T. Barnum</span> American showman and politician (1810–1891)

Phineas Taylor Barnum was an American showman, businessman and politician remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus with James Anthony Bailey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grove Street Cemetery</span> Cemetery in Connecticut, US

Grove Street Cemetery or Grove Street Burial Ground is a cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut, that is surrounded by the Yale University campus. It was organized in 1796 as the New Haven Burying Ground and incorporated in October 1797 to replace the crowded burial ground on the New Haven Green. The first private, nonprofit cemetery in the world, it was one of the earliest burial grounds to have a planned layout, with plots permanently owned by individual families, a structured arrangement of ornamental plantings, and paved and named streets and avenues. By introducing ideas like permanent memorials and the sanctity of the deceased body, the cemetery became "a real turning point... a whole redefinition of how people viewed death and dying", according to historian Peter Dobkin Hall. Many notable Yale and New Haven luminaries are buried in the Grove Street Cemetery, including 14 Yale presidents; nevertheless, it was not restricted to members of the upper class, and was open to all.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Bridgeport</span> Private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States

The University of Bridgeport is a nonprofit private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retained its own name, brand, and board of trustees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Tom Thumb</span> American circus performer (1838–1883)

Charles Sherwood Stratton, better known by his stage name "General Tom Thumb", was an American with dwarfism who achieved great fame as a performer under circus pioneer P. T. Barnum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cave Hill Cemetery</span> Historic cemetery in Jefferson County, Kentucky

Cave Hill Cemetery is a 296-acre (1.20 km2) Victorian era National Cemetery and arboretum located at Louisville, Kentucky. Its main entrance is on Baxter Avenue and there is a secondary one on Grinstead Drive. It is the largest cemetery by area and number of burials in Louisville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Barnum</span> American politician

William Henry Barnum was an American politician, serving as a state representative, congressman, U.S. senator, and finally as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. He was also known as "Seven Mule Barnum".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnum Museum</span> History Museum in Connecticut, U.S.

The Barnum Museum is a museum at 820 Main Street in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. It has an extensive collection related to P. T. Barnum and the history of Bridgeport, and is housed in a historic building on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Bridgeport, Connecticut</span>

The history of Bridgeport, Connecticut was, in the late 17th and most of the 18th century, one of land acquisitions from the native inhabitants, farming and fishing. From the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century, Bridgeport's history was one of shipbuilding, whaling and rapid growth. Bridgeport's growth accelerated even further from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century with the advent of the railroad, Industrialization, massive immigration, labor movements until, at its peak population in 1950, Bridgeport with some 159,000 people was Connecticut's second most populous city. In the late 20th century, Bridgeport's history was one of deindustrialization and declining population, though it overtook Hartford as the state's most populous city by 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connecticut in the American Civil War</span> Union state in the American Civil War

The New England state of Connecticut played an important role in the American Civil War, providing arms, equipment, technology, funds, supplies, and soldiers for the Union Army and the Union Navy. Several Connecticut politicians played significant roles in the Federal government and helped shape its policies during the war and the Reconstruction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iranistan</span> Bygone Moorish revival mansion of P.T. Barnum

Iranistan was a Moorish Revival mansion in Bridgeport, Connecticut commissioned by P. T. Barnum in 1848. It was designed by Bohemian-American architect Leopold Eidlitz. At this "beautiful country seat" Barnum played host to such famous contemporaries as the Hutchinson Family Singers, Matthew Arnold, George Armstrong Custer, Horace Greeley, and Mark Twain. The grandiose structure survived only a decade before being destroyed by fire in 1857. It was one of five such fires in the showman's life that "burned to the ground all his accomplishments".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harmony Grove Cemetery</span>

Harmony Grove Cemetery is a rural cemetery in Salem, Massachusetts. It was established in 1840 and is located at 30 Grove Street. The cemetery is approximately 35 acres in size and was designed by Francis Peabody and Alexander Wadsworth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgeport, Connecticut, Centennial half dollar</span> 1936 US commemorative coin

The Bridgeport, Connecticut, Centennial half dollar is a commemorative fifty-cent piece issued in 1936 by the United States Bureau of the Mint to honor the 100th anniversary of the incorporation of Bridgeport, Connecticut, as a city. Designed by Henry Kreis, the obverse depicts the showman P. T. Barnum, who was one of Bridgeport's most famous residents, was mayor of the city, helped develop it, and is buried there. The reverse depicts a stylized eagle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seaside Park (Connecticut)</span> United States historic place

Seaside Park, located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is a 2.5-mile (4.0 km) long crescent-shaped park bordering Bridgeport Harbor, Long Island Sound, and Black Rock Harbor. The park lies within Bridgeport's South End neighborhood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry</span> Water transportation service between Long Island and Connecticut

The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company, commonly referred to as the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry is a privately-owned transportation company that operates passenger and vehicle ferry service across Long Island Sound, between the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut and the Long Island village of Port Jefferson, New York. Founded in 1883, it is one of the oldest continuously-operating ferry companies in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William B. Hincks</span>

William Bliss Hincks was a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War who received the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor.

The Cedar Grove Cemetery is a non-sectarian rural cemetery in New London, Connecticut. It was established in 1851 on 39 acres and designed by Dr. Horatio Stone. The cemetery is located at the intersection of Broad Street and Jefferson Avenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Bridgeport, Connecticut</span>

Bridgeport, Connecticut is a major city of Connecticut located on Long Island Sound at the mouth of the Pequonnock River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horatio Stone</span> 19th century American sculptor, physician, and writer

Horatio Stone, was an American sculptor, physician, and writer. He is best remembered for his three statues in the U.S. Capitol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Division Street Historic District (Bridgeport, Connecticut)</span> Historic district in Connecticut, United States

The Division Street Historic District encompasses one of the best-preserved 19th-century residential areas of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Now separated from downtown Bridgeport by the Connecticut Route 25 highway, the area includes a cross-section of 19th-century architectural styles, as well as a diversity of sophistication, from working-class accommodations to high-style Victorian mansions. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

References

  1. Rogak, Lisa (2004), Stones and Bones of New England: A guide to unusual, historic, and otherwise notable cemeteries, Globe Pequat ISBN   0-7627-3000-5
  2. Ernest Stevens Leland, "Mountain Grove Cemetery in Bridgeport," Park and Cemetery and Landscape Gardening, Chicago, vol. 30, no. 10 (December 1920), p. 260.
  3. Pro Patria: Civil War monument of Connecticut Archived 2007-10-16 at the Wayback Machine