History
The cemetery dates from 1844, when members of the Cincinnati Horticultural Society formed a cemetery association. They took their inspiration from contemporary rural cemeteries such as Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, and Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts. [3] The numerous springs and groves suggested the name "Spring Grove". [4] On December 1, 1844, Salmon P. Chase and others prepared the Articles of Incorporation. The cemetery was designed by Howard Daniels [5] and formally chartered on January 21, 1845. The first burial took place on September 1, 1845.
In 1855, Adolph Strauch, a renowned landscape architect, was hired to beautify the grounds. [6] His sense and layout of the "garden cemetery" made of lakes, trees and shrubs, is what visitors today still see. He created a more open landscape by setting limits on private enclosures and monument heights. [7] The results of the redesign earned Strauch praise in the U.S. and abroad, [8] including from Frederick Law Olmsted and the French landscape architect Edouard André. [9] On March 29, 2007, the cemetery was designated a National Historic Landmark. [10] The Spring Grove Cemetery Chapel is listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places.
On October 23, 2013, cemetery staff removed a large and potentially disturbing SpongeBob SquarePants headstone from the grave of U.S. Army Corporal Kimberly Walker and another for her still-living sister a day after her funeral. The family believed they had permission from a worker, who management said had erred. [11] In February 2014, both parties agreed to reinstate the statues with granite slabs largely hiding them from passersby. [12]
Description
Spring Grove encompasses 733 acres (2.97 km2) of which 400 acres (1.6 km2) are currently landscaped and maintained. Its grounds include 12 ponds, [13] many fine tombstones and memorials, and various examples of Gothic Revival architecture.
As of 2005, its National Champion trees were Cladrastis kentukea and Halesia diptera; its State Champion trees included Abies cilicica, Abies koreana, Cedrus libani, Chionanthus virginicus, Eucommia ulmoides, Halesia parvifolia, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, Phellodendron amurense, Picea orientalis, Picea polita, Pinus flexilis, Pinus griffithi, Pinus monticola, Quercus cerris, Quercus nigra, Taxodium distichum, Ulmus serotina, and Zelkova serrata.
The Taft Museum of Art is a fine art collection in Cincinnati, Ohio. It occupies the 200-year-old historic house at 316 Pike Street. The house – the oldest domestic wooden structure in downtown Cincinnati – was built about 1820 and housed several prominent Cincinnatians, including Martin Baum, Nicholas Longworth, David Sinton, Anna Sinton Taft and Charles Phelps Taft. It is on the National Register of Historic Places listings, and is a contributing property to the Lytle Park Historic District.
Manning Ferguson Force was a lawyer, judge, and soldier from Ohio. He became known as the commander of the 20th Ohio Volunteer Infantry in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and was a recipient of the Army Medal of Honor for gallantry in action. He was awarded this honor in 1892 for his heroism during the Battle of Atlanta, on July 22, 1864. He was a justice of the Superior Court of Cincinnati.
Rufus R. Dawes was a military officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He used the middle initial "R" but had no middle name. He was noted for his service in the famed Iron Brigade, particularly during the Battle of Gettysburg. He was a post-war businessman, Congressman, and author, and the father of four nationally known sons, one of whom, Charles G. Dawes, won the Nobel Peace Prize and served as Vice President of the United States, and of two daughters. He was himself a great-grandson of William Dawes, who alerted colonial minutemen of the approach of the British Army prior to the Battles of Lexington and Concord at the outset of the American Revolution, and a maternal great-grandson of the Rev. Manasseh Cutler, who was instrumental in adoption of the Northwest ordinance of 1787, led the formation of the Ohio Company of Associates, and became "Father of Ohio University".
Andrew Hickenlooper was an Ohioan civil engineer, politician, industrialist, and a Union Army lieutenant colonel of artillery and engineers. In recognition of his service, in 1866, he was nominated and confirmed for appointment as a brevet brigadier general of volunteers to rank from March 13, 1865.
Nicholas Longworth Anderson was a United States Army officer who served in the American Civil War as Colonel of the 6th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. After the Civil War, he was nominated and confirmed for appointment to the brevet grades of brigadier general and major general of volunteers.
The 6th Ohio Infantry Regiment was a regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War, primarily serving in the Western Theater in a series of campaigns and battles.
During the American Civil War, the Ohio River port city of Cincinnati, Ohio, played a key role as a major source of supplies and troops for the Union Army. It also served as the headquarters for much of the war for the Department of the Ohio, which was charged with the defense of the region, as well as directing the army's offensives into Kentucky and Tennessee.
Charles Elwood Brown was a U.S. Representative from Ohio.
Henry Blackstone Banning was a lawyer and three-term U.S. Representative from Ohio, as well as an infantry officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
William Henry Enochs was a U.S. Representative from Ohio.
Kenner Garrard was a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. A member of one of Ohio's most prominent military families, he performed well at the Battle of Gettysburg, and then led a cavalry division in the army of Major General William T. Sherman during the Atlanta Campaign. He developed a reputation for personal bravery and was cited for gallantry at the Battle of Nashville as an infantry division commander.
Greenwood Cemetery is a registered historic district in Hamilton, Ohio, listed in the National Register of Historic Places on July 22, 1994. It contains 5 contributing buildings. Greenwood is designed in the style of a landscaped park and garden with mortuary art and statues among the graves.
Adolph Strauch was a renowned landscape architect born in Silesia, Prussia, known particularly for his layout designs of cemeteries like Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio, Forest Lawn in Buffalo, NY and Oak Woods Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois. Strauch also laid out many parks in Cincinnati, Ohio, including Eden Park, Burnet Woods and Lincoln Park. Strauch was hired by Spring Grove Cemetery in 1855 to handle the landscaping, and became superintendent of the place by 1859. He also designed Greenwood Cemetery.
Eden Park is an urban park located in the Walnut Hills neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. The hilltop park occupies 186 acres (0.75 km2), and offers numerous overlooks of the Ohio River valley.
West Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869, is 200 acres in size, and contains the burials of many notable people. It is affiliated with Laurel Hill Cemetery in nearby Philadelphia. The cemetery property is an accredited arboretum and has an on-site funeral home and crematorium. The cemetery contains two Jewish burial sections and an environmentally friendly burial section. The cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
Peter John Sullivan was an Irish-American soldier and lawyer, who became United States Ambassador to Colombia.
Joshua Hall Bates was a lawyer, politician, and Ohio militia general in service to the Union during the early part of the American Civil War. He was a leading recruiter and organizer of many of the first regiments of Ohio troops who volunteered after President Abraham Lincoln's call to arms in the spring of 1861.
Henry Martyn Cist was an American soldier, lawyer, and author who was a Union Army captain and staff officer during the American Civil War. On December 11, 1866 he was nominated and on February 6, 1867 he was confirmed for appointment to the grade of brevet brigadier general of volunteers, to rank from March 13, 1865. He is most noted for his classic and oft-referenced 1882 book The Army of the Cumberland. In addition, Cist led pioneering efforts to preserve and interpret the sites of the battles of Chickamauga and Chattanooga.
Lytle Park Historic District is a historic district in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. Roughly bounded by 3rd, 5th, Sycamore, Commercial Sq., and Butler Sts. in downtown Cincinnati, it centers on Lytle Park.
Henry Gassaway Kennett was an American politician and lawyer who served as a Union brevet brigadier general during the period of the American Civil War.
