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Countless secrets exist among the carved headstones, winding paths, and towering trees at Woodlawn Cemetery. Considering that 315,000 New Yorkers have made this Bronx green space their final resting place, it’s no surprise that they’d bring some incredible stories to rest alongside them.
Woodlawn Cemetery & Conservancy dates back to the mid 1860s—a time when burials were outlawed in Manhattan, pushing cemeteries to spring up in the outer boroughs. Given Woodlawn’s location along train lines, it became a popular cemetery where Manhattanites could easily go to visit their lost loved ones, and it remains so today. Burials are still accepted, and there’s even a historic, gently used mausoleum for sale for $10 million (yes, just like in Succession). In addition to that HBO-level fun fact, here are five more secrets of Woodlawn Cemetery we learned on a tour with the cemetery's coordinator of programming, Liz Hunter.
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It's the final resting place for many notable New Yorkers
On a walk through Woodlawn, you’ll definitely see names you recognize: Augustus D. Juilliard, Fiorello La Guardia, Angelica Van Buren, Herman Melville, Celia Cruz, Joseph Pulitzer, Nellie Bly, J.C. Penney, F.W. Woolworth and more.
You’ll also walk by names that you might not immediately recognize but who made major contributions that you’ll certainly have heard about: To name a few, Louis Marx, creator of Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots; Margaret Rudkin, founder of Pepperidge Farm; and U.S. Navy Admiral David Farragut who said “Damn the torpedoes!”
Woodlawn is home to incredible suffrage history
If you've seen the musical Suffs, then you know about Alva Vanderbilt Belmont, the wealthy woman who helped to finance the suffrage movement. She opened the Marble House, a place where women could meet to talk about politics and the suffrage movement. She even bought the Suffs matching outfits and banners for protests.
She also dedicated herself to creating a beautiful mausoleum as a final resting place for herself and her late husband Oliver Belmont. Inspired by their travels in France, she designed their mausoleum after the Chapel of Saint-Hubert in Amboise, carefully considering every detail. She had the stained glass windows covered in a gray tint so they'd look like old medieval windows. Guastavino tiles (the same kind found in Grand Central Terminal) make up the ceiling.
On the day of her funeral in 1933, her fellow suffragists lined up outside the mausoleum and carried purple-white-and-gold suffrage banners. Belmont's original suffrage banner, now faded and tattered, hangs inside her mausoleum.
"Alva also changed the rules at Woodlawn," Hunter says. "She wanted people to come and see her beautiful mausoleum that she built. So at one point, she'd hired a security guard who would sit inside the gate, inside the doors of the mausoleum and welcome guests to come and look inside."
Though the interior is no longer open for public viewing, you can still stand outside of the beautiful mausoleum to pay tribute to Belmont and her legacy.
In addition to Belmont, several other suffragists are buried at Woodlawn, including Anna Bliss, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Katherine Duer Mackay and Carrie Chapman Catt.
Jazz icons have found a home there
Thousands of visitors each year descend upon Woodlawn's Jazz Corner, a section of the cemetery where a variety of jazz artists are buried. Duke Ellington is at rest there, near to Miles Davis, Jackie McLean, Frankie Manning, Max Roach and Lionel Hampton.
Many of these stars have unique monuments. Ellington chose a spot under a beautiful linden tree; then Hampton wanted to be buried as close to Ellington as possible. That simple request began the Jazz Corner. On Davis' headstone, you'll see an etching of his song "Solar;" McLean's bears an image of him playing the saxophone; and an image of Manning performing the Lindy Hop decorates his tombstone. At the grave of bebop drummer Max Roach, visitors often leave drumsticks as a tribute.
You can see the world's first marriage equality sculpture
Back in 2002, when same-sex marriage was still illegal in the U.S., two artists took on the bold move of designing their own burial plot. The world’s first marriage equality sculpture, this three-ton marble sculpture by Patricia Cronin and Deborah Kass depicts the two women entwined in an embrace on a bed. When same-sex marriage became legal, they were one of the first couples to get married at city hall.
Eventually, Hunter said, there will be space for their cremains around the memorial.
Thirteen Titanic passengers are buried there
An Egyptian funeral barge makes up the final reseting place for Isidor and Ida Strauss, a wealthy older couple who died on the Titanic. Though they were offered places in lifeboats, Isidor wanted to give up his place to a younger man. Ida refused get in a lifeboat and leave Isidor behind. The last time they were seen is arm-in-arm of the deck of the ship listening to the music being played as the behemoth ship sank. Isidor's remains were found, while Ida was lost at sea.
The Strausses became the inspiration for the older couple seen lying in bed during the movie version of Titanic.
In addition to Isidor and Ida, several other passengers of the Titanic are buried at Woodlawn; many were first-class passengers who were rescued and died later in life.