6 Westchester Cemeteries Filled With Beauty and History

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Sleepy Hollow • est. 1849

The 100-acre nondenominational Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, which has numerous notable interments, is oft confused with the contiguous and smaller (at about three acres) Old Dutch Church and Burying Ground. Settlers from Holland built the latter between 1685 and 1697. The stone church and churchyard are still owned by the original congregation, known as The Reformed Church of the Tarrytowns.

andrew carhegie grave in cemetery — Photo by Frank Roberts

andrew carnegie grave — The grave of Andrew Carnegie, once one of the wealthiest individuals in the world and quite the philanthropist, is marked by a Celtic cross and footstone. Photo by Frank Roberts

grave and flags in cemetery — Author Washington Irving’s 1820 short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is set in the adjacent burying ground, at the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow. Photo by Frank Roberts

grave in cemetery — Photo by Frank Roberts

bennch — Pictured is a section of the natural burial grounds at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. The sustainable space is for green burials and cremations using only biodegradable, natural materials. Photo by Frank Roberts

Gate of Heaven Cemetery

Hawthorne • est. 1917

Gate of Heaven Cemetery has interred more than 190,000 Catholics and members of their families since its founding. John Cardinal Farley, archbishop of New York, consecrated the cemetery on July 14, 1918. It averages more than 2,200 interment services each year.

cemetery grave — Baseball legend George Herman “Babe” Ruth was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1946. He died two years later. His body lay in state at the main entrance to Yankee Stadium for a public viewing for two days, which attracted hundreds of viewers. His second wife, Claire, is buried beside him at the cemetery. Photo by Ken Gabrielsen

structure in cemetery — Photo by Ken Gabrielsen

Old Van Cortlandtville Cemetery

Cortlandt Manor • est. 1750

On the National Register of Historic Places, this six-acre cemetery is the burial site of at least 44 American Revolutionary War soldiers (and possibly up to 60).

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grave — A black granite, anvil-shaped six-plus-ton monument is dedicated to Seth Pomeroy, who fought at Bunker Hill and was later commissioned as the first brigadier general of the United States by General George Washington. Photo by Frank Roberts

graves in cemetery — There are eight unnamed graves of French soldiers who fought under Comte de Rochambeau, the French general who aided George Washington, most significantly at the 1781 Battle of Yorktown. Photo by Frank Roberts

African American Cemetery

Rye • est. 1860

There are an estimated 300 people buried at the African American Cemetery, located inside the Greenwood Union Cemetery in Rye, although many do not have headstones or formal markers. Closed for new burials in 1964, when the segregation of cemeteries ended, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. Among the interred are 22 veterans of the Civil War, Spanish American War, World War I, and World War II.

civil war grave — Civil War veteran Samuel Marshell fought in the Battle of Harper’s Ferry and was held as a prisoner of war by Confederate forces. Photo by Frank Roberts

endless hudson cemetery grave — Photo by Frank Roberts

Kensico Cemetery

Valhalla • est. 1889

By the late 1800s, when many New York City cemeteries were becoming full, rural cemeteries were created near the railroads that served the city. Kensico was one such cemetery, with 460 acres of hillsides, pathways, woodlands, ponds, brooks, and streams, serving multidenominational needs.

cemetery structure — The Gothic-style Kensico Tower at the upper entrance is 98 feet tall. Within, a 100,000-gallon water tank is used for the grounds’ gardening needs. Photo by Ken Gabrielsen

stairs in cemetery — Interred at The Mecca Temple are nine members of the Masonic society Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, better known today as Shriners International. Photo by Ken Gabrielsen

Sparta Cemetery

Ossining • est. 1764

Also known as the Presbyterian Burying Ground at Sparta, the two-acre property was given to congregants of the First Presbyterian Church of Ossining by Dutch merchant Frederick Philipse, one of the greatest landholders in pre-Revolutionary New York. Sparta is the oldest organized burial ground in Ossining.

A plaque by the Daughters of the American Revolution commemorates the incident whereby a cannon shot by the British warship Vulture during a September 1780 battle with colonists damaged the headstone of Abraham LaDew, who was born in 1767 and died in 1774, at the age of 7. Via a directive in his will, LaDew’s father (also named Abraham) had a brick wall constructed around his family’s plot. Photo by Frank Roberts

sign in cemetery — Known for his handmade leather clothing and a 365-mile loop he’d make stopping in myriad towns in Westchester and Connecticut, The Leatherman lived in rock shelters and was thought to have originally been from Lyons, France. Photo by Frank Roberts