Institution

Kensico Cemetery was the brainchild of Reese Carpenter (c.1847-1915). A native of Westchester County, Carpenter achieved a great deal of success in the railroad industry, particularly by making improvements to signal systems and rail cars. Carpenter recognized that the growing metropolis of New York City needed more burial space, and realized that establishing a cemetery along a railroad could provide convenient access for city residents. Carpenter found three farms alongside the New York &amp; Harlem Railroad near the Valhalla Post Office. (Although it became home to several large cemeteries, Valhalla is said to have taken its name from the fondness of the wife of Postmaster Andrew J. Kirch for the operas of Richard Wagner). On January 19, 1889, seven men met to incorporate Kensico Cemetery. By August of that year the association had acquired 250 acres of land and secured approval to use it for burial purposes. Once the property had been acquired, the cemetery management began to prepare the land for burial. Reese Carpenter stressed that the natural landscape of the property should be kept as much as possible, noting, "you are planning a cemetery not so much to be a place so unique that men will visit it as an eighth wonder of the world as to be a spot which men and women will select as the final abode of their loved ones." The first interment at Kensico Cemetery took place in 1890. That same year a railroad station was opened along the New York &amp; Harlem Railroad. Marketing the burial ground to residents of New York City, Kensico Cemetery opened an office one block from Grand Central Terminal. The cemetery directors also purchased a private funeral car, "Kensico," that could be rented by funeral parties that were travelling along the railroad to and from Manhattan. In 1894 Kensico constructed a large receiving tomb that featured 178 individual marble catacombs. Located alongside the railroad, the receiving tomb became a kind of advertisement for the cemetery to commuters. The success experienced by Kensico Cemetery during the late 19th and early 20th centuries led to the opening of several other burial places in the Valhalla area, including Mount Pleasant Cemetery in 1899, Gate of Heaven Cemetery in 1918 and Mount Eden Cemetery in 1928. It also inspired Reese Carpenter to establish several other cemeteries, including Druid Ridge Cemetery near Baltimore, Somerton Hills Cemetery near Philadelphia, Knollwood Memorial Park near Boston and Lakeside Cemetery near Buffalo. In 1925 Kensico Cemetery opened a large community mausoleum on Commerce Street. Consisting of Etowah pink marble from Georgia on the exterior and white marble from Alabama on the interior, the mausoleum contains 292 crypts, 68 niches for urns, two private rooms, and a chapel. In 1953 Kensico Cemetery opened Sharon Gardens, a burial ground for members of the Jewish faith. Sharon Gardens became very popular with the Jewish residents of the tri-state area, and many congregations and families purchased plots in the new burial ground. Kensico Cemetery and Sharon Gardens serve as the final resting place for a number of notable individuals, including: -Paul Bonwit, founder of the Bonwit Teller department store.-Billie Burke, actress.-Luigi Palma di Cesnola, Medal of Honor recipient.-Tommy Dorsey, bandleader.-Harry Frazee, theater mogul and owner of the Boston Red Sox.-Lou Gehrig, New York Yankees star and member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.-Danny Kaye, comedian and actor.-Robert Merrill, opera singer and actor.-Harriet Quimby, aviatrix.-Sergei Rachmaninoff, pianist and conductor.-Ayn Rand, author and philosopher.-Jacob Ruppert, brewer and owner of the New York Yankees.-Milton "Soupy" Sales, comedian and radio/television personality. One of Kensico Cemetery's busiest days is the Qingming Festival, a Chinese holiday also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day. The cemetery's topography is considered ideal for those who wish to select a burial place using the Chinese concept of feng shui. Kensico's connection to the Chinese American community dates to 1904 when the Christian Chinese Burial Association acquired more than 1,000 lots at the cemetery. Among the Chinese American organizations that have acquired large plots at Kensico is the First Chinese Baptist Church, a congregation in Chinatown, Manhattan.

The largest burial place in Westchester County, Kensico Cemetery was founded in 1889.  It was incorporated under New York's Rural Cemetery Act of 1847.  At its founding, the cemetery was intended to be not only a burial place for residents of Westchester, but also as a place of interment for residents of New York City.  Located along the New York & Harlem Railroad, could conveniently be accessed by residents of Manhattan, which was only 26 miles away from the cemetery by train.  In 1953 Kensico opened Sharon Gardens, a portion of the cemetery for members of the Jewish faith.  Kensico Cemetery and Sharon Gardens serve as the final resting place of a number of notable individuals who achieved success in the fields of business, entertainment, philanthropy, politics, and sports.

Historical Kensico Cemetery in upstate New York is the final resting place of legendary baseball player Lou Gehrig. While visiting Kensico one can find Lou Gehrig’s gravestone at plot section number 93 and lot number 12686. Both Gehrig and his wife Eleanor’s ashes are located inside the headstone.1 Henry Louis Gehrig was born in New York City on June 19, 1903, to German immigrants Heinrich and Christina Gehrig. Although he had a rather poor upbringing Lou Gehrig's mother insisted he receive a good education. At the age of 18, Gehrig attended Columbia University on a football scholarship pursuing a degree in engineering. As if fate had different ideas for him, New York Giants manager John McGraw insisted Gehrig should play baseball during the summer. Despite the fact that it was against collegiate rules to play baseball while playing football, Gehrig played baseball anyway.2Though Gehrig did get in a bit of trouble due to his baseball playing, eventually he was called up to the majors in September of 1923. He became a full-time New York Yankees player in 1925. Also known as the "Iron Horse", Gehrig went on to play 2,130 games straight for the Yankees despite numerous broken bones and back problems. While playing alongside Babe Ruth might have been a challenge for the spotlight, these two baseball legends were an unstoppable force on the Yankees baseball team.2 In 1938 after playing as a Yankee for 13 seasons, Lou Gehrig was diagnosed with a very rare form of a degenerative disease known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ALS is now more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Gehrig's last game with the Yankee's was played in April of 1939. In his famous farewell speech held at Yankee stadium Gehrig considered himself "the luckiest man on the face of the earth". In 1939, two years before he died, Gehrig was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame. When Lou Gehrig died at the age of 37 on June 2, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and over 1,500 people sent flowers and cards of condolences to Gehrig's wife Eleanor. 2During his baseball career, Lou Gehrig won a total of six World Series Championships and holds many records. These records include 23 career grand slam home runs, and the American League record for most career home runs by a first baseman with 493.2

Kensico Cemetery was established in 1889 at a time when many of the cemeteries in New York City were unable to accept additional internments. Kensico is the final resting place of numerous actors, actresses, notable business people, and athletes. including Yankees legend, Lou Gehrig. Lou Gehrig played for the New York Yankees from 1925 to 1939 which includes a record-setting streak of appearing in 2,130 consecutive games. The streak ended only with his retirement due to ALS in 1939.

Lou Gehrig's Final Resting Place

Anne Bancroft, born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano in 1931, died in 2005. She was born in the Bronx and spent her early life in New York before moving to California to pursue an acting career.&nbsp; Bancroft's career spanned most of the second half of the twentieth century. She made her film and theater debut in the early 1950s and continued working until shortly before her death. She was nominated for numerous awards over the course of her career, and won an Academy Award for her performance in The Miracle Worker. The role that she is most well-known for, however, is her portrayal of Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate, a groundbreaking film that became a pop culture icon.&nbsp; Bancroft, who was married to actor Mel Brooks, died in 2005 of uterine cancer. She was buried in Kensico Cemetery, near the graves of her parents.&nbsp; Kensico Cemetery was founded in 1889. At the time, many city cemeteries were becoming overcrowded and unsanitary, and city planners began to encourage rural cemeteries, which were intended to be quiet and serene, providing a peaceful place for families to visit the graves of their loved ones. Kensico's planners took advantage of the landscape, allowing roads to follow the natural curves and hills of the land.

Acclaimed actor and Oscar winner Anne Bancroft is buried in Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York. Bancroft, a New York native, is buried in a plot near her parents. 

Anne Bancroft's Final Resting Place (Kensico Cemetery)

The plot at Kensico Cemetery belonging to Mecca Temple, Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.

Entries on This Tour

Kensico Cemetery

Description

Share