Oak Hill Cemetery (Pontiac, Michigan)

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Oak Hill Cemetery
Oak Hill Cemetery Pontiac MI A.JPG
Location 216 University Dr., Pontiac, Michigan
Coordinates 42°38′34″N83°17′7″W / 42.64278°N 83.28528°W / 42.64278; -83.28528 Coordinates: 42°38′34″N83°17′7″W / 42.64278°N 83.28528°W / 42.64278; -83.28528
Area 23 acres (9.3 ha)
Built 1822 (1822)
Architectural style Classical Revival, Gothic, Romanesque
NRHP reference # 89000493 [1]
Added to NRHP June 20, 1989

The Oak Hill Cemetery is a cemetery located at 216 University Drive in Pontiac, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. [1]

Cemetery Place of burial

A cemetery or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word cemetery implies that the land is specifically designated as a burial ground and originally applied to the Roman catacombs. The term graveyard is often used interchangeably with cemetery, but a graveyard primarily refers to a burial ground within a churchyard.

Pontiac, Michigan City in Michigan, United States

Pontiac is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, located in Metro Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 59,515. It is the county seat of Oakland County and about 12 miles (19 km) north and slightly west of the Detroit city limits.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Contents

History

Pontiac was first settled in 1818 and 1819 by the Pontiac Company, and in 1822 the company set aside a parcel of land just east of town for use as a cemetery, church, and parsonage. In 1839 the village of Pontiac hired Captain Hervey Parke to survey the parcel and lay out a lot as a cemetery. This became the first portion of the presnt Oak Hill Cemetery, and the grounds were plotted for use by 1841. [2]

Over time, more land was allocated to the cemetery until it reached its present size by about the turn of the century. Various improvements were made over the years, including replacing the original cemetery office, which burned, and adding the gate and fencing. [2]

The cemetery contains the remains of six veterans of the Revolutionary War and well over 27 veterans of the Civil War, including General Israel B. Richardson, Michigan governor Moses Wisner, and General Joseph T. Copeland. [2]

American Civil War Civil war in the United States from 1861 to 1865

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865, between the North and the South. The most studied and written about episode in U.S. history, the Civil War began primarily as a result of the long-standing controversy over the enslavement of black people. War broke out in April 1861 when secessionist forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina shortly after Abraham Lincoln had been inaugurated as the President of the United States. The loyalists of the Union in the North proclaimed support for the Constitution. They faced secessionists of the Confederate States in the South, who advocated for states' rights to uphold slavery.

Israel B. Richardson Union Army general

Israel Bush Richardson was a United States Army officer during the Mexican–American War and American Civil War, where he was a major general in the Union Army. Nicknamed "Fighting Dick" for his prowess on the battlefield, he was mortally wounded at the Battle of Antietam near Sharpsburg, Maryland.

Moses Wisner American politician

Moses Wisner was a politician and soldier from the U.S. state of Michigan.

Description

The Oak Hill Cemetery is located on a section of high, sloping ground east of downtown Pontiac. Groves of large, old trees, primarily hardwoods, cover the grounds. The cemetery is separated by University Avenue, with 15.6 acres north of University and 7.3 acres south. In the northern section, roadways and plots are laid out in a rectangular array, while south of University the roadways are laid out in a curvilinear form. A simple, wrought iron picket fence lines the road. [2]

The cemetery office, a single story, front-gable structure of rock-face fieldstone, is located on the south side of University. Nearby is the Buckland Memorial Chapel, dating from 1898. The chapel is a sandstone structure built in an old English style. A number of mausoleums also dot the grounds. [2]

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References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2013-11-02). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Robert E. Donohue, Jr.; Robert O. Christensen (January 1989), National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Oak Hill Cemetery
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