Author Archives: gravelyspeaking

…that immortal sea…

Posted on July 4, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

Anna Dorinda Blaksley Barnes Bliss 1851-1935 Anna Bliss was a generous benefactor to many charities including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Natural History in New York and the Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, California.  Mrs. Bliss was … Continue reading →

Posted in Famous graves, Symbolism | Leave a comment

Stained Glass Pieta

Posted on June 29, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

Many mausoleums have a window in the rear part of the tomb—often made of stained glass. Many of these windows are hand painted works of art, most often depicting religious symbolism or religious figures. This stained glass and hand-painted window … Continue reading →

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Escorts on the journey ahead

Posted on June 21, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

The modest mausoleum in the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx was built for Charles Waite Waller (March 20, 1870-January 19, 1927) and his wife, Rose Ann Hutchcroft Waller.  Charles was born in the tiny coastal village of Anderby, England, with … Continue reading →

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Double Take

Posted on June 15, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

The Egyptian Revival was an architectural movement that swept the United States and Europe.  The movement in America was influenced by three separate events—the first was Napoleon’s defeat of Egypt in the 1790s.  Later Napoleon published the results of his … Continue reading →

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James Cash Penny, Jr.

Posted on June 13, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

The light gray granite mausoleum belongs to J. C. Penny (September 16, 1875 – February 12, 1971) the American businessman and department chain founder that bears his name. The mausoleum is relatively plain, except for the elaborate repeating pattern surrounding … Continue reading →

Posted in Mausoleums, Saving Graces | 1 Comment

The Gates Mausoleum

Posted on June 11, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

  The Gates Mausoleum (not Bill Gates, who is very much alive) in the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx is a massive display of wealth.  Robert “Bet-a-Million” Warne Gates, who made a fortune manufacturing and selling barbed wire and founding … Continue reading →

Posted in Saving Graces, Symbolism, Tombs, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Double Headstones

Posted on June 10, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

In the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, Massachusetts, there are two gravestones, each memorializing a man and a wife’s life on the same gray slate gravestone.  Both gravestones are of similar design, with the willow and urn motif displayed in … Continue reading →

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The Beginning of the Romantic Era

Posted on June 5, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

Sacred to the memory of MRS. POLLY MANTOR Wife of Capt. Jeremiah Mantor Who died Oct. 19, 1817 Aged 31 years 8 mos & 3 days My friend and colleague, Tom, vacations on Martha’s Vineyard and during one of his … Continue reading →

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Mail Order Markers

Posted on May 27, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

The Monumental Bronze Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut, produced cast zinc cemetery markers billed as “white bronze.”  The company set up their first subsidiary in Detroit, Michigan. Others followed in Philadelphia, New Orleans, St. Thomas, Ontario, Des Moines, and Chicago. The Chicago subsidiary … Continue reading →

Posted in Symbolism, Zinc Markers | Leave a comment

The Tuscan Order

Posted on May 25, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

David D. Pursglove Born April 3, 1881 England Died December 19, 1921 The gray granite mausoleum in the Saint Clairsville, Ohio, Union Cemetery is an example of Neo-classic design in the Tuscan order characterized, in part, by the plain Doric … Continue reading →

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