Beautiful old album dated Christmas 1899 (according to the inscription in the front).

Brompton Cemetery - http://www.brompton.org

It was a rainy, overcast, chilly day when I visited Brompton Cemetery. (The catacombs were closed, unfortunately.) It's hardly a two minute walk from the West Brompton tube stop, and impossible to miss.

On the up side, it's a gorgeous place, and the planned naturalization seems to really suit it. Lots of wildlife, too--particularly birds. There were two fox dens near the walkways over the catacombs, but I didn't get to see the residents. The squirrels were adamant about wanting to be fed, and they followed us everywhere, posing and being deliberately cute.

On the down side, feeding the wildlife is prohibited. Also, bikers (cyclists) use the cemetery as a cut-through and they whizz through at incredibly high speeds.

For good or ill, it also seems to be something of a popular hook-up spot for gay guys, which is fine by me, but it was still a bit of a shock to walk around a corner and see a couple of guys engaged in genito-oral activities of an adult nature, or negotiating said. They weren't too thrilled with me and my camera, either, but I made it a point to ignore them and keep the camera pointed at the ground when I was near the catacombs, just to keep the peace.

Unfortunately, we got to Brompton toward the end of our trip, and my knee was in bad shape from all the walking. It definitely didn't do the pictures any good--I was shaky, and it shows in quite a few of the photos. I've posted most of them anyway--better than nothing.

Here's another set from Charter Street Cemetery (aka Old Burying Ground) in Salem. (Can I just mention how fantastically, incredibly old it was...?)

The best shots, I think, are those I managed to catch of a hawk ripping into a squirrel in the rear corner of the cemetery. He was very, very cool and I made sure I didn't get near enough to disturb him.

Worse, in some ways, than Camden, NJ. But but not by much. (I worked in Camden for nearly 4 years and I have a deep affection for the place. The current situation is both disheartening and deplorable.)

Colma--City of the Dead.

These photos were with the envelpoe, pictured.

Useful information: The cemetery is open every day from 7:30am until dusk. The site covers 250 acres, and I can easily see taking a lunch and spending the better part of a day there--which I would have enjoyed had the weather been more pleasant--so the fact that there are two public restrooms is a tremendous plus. They're located in each end of the main entrance gate--one women's, one men's. I can't speak for the men's room, but the women's room was quite clean.

On the Web: http://www.foresthillscemetery.com (for info on cemetery services and regulations)
and http://www.foresthillstrust.org (for info about events and exhibitions)

By phone: 617-524-0128

Address:
Forest Hills Cemetery
95 Forest Hills Ave
Boston, MA 02130

Can you identify any of the people in these pictures? Know someone who might be able to? Use the Comment feature to let me know if you recognize anyone. If you have an original printing of any of these photos that has names written on it by an earlier owner, please share. (The full-size images are available for viewing to make the faces more identifiable.)

Located on High Bridge Church Rd. in Natural Bridge, VA
Founded in 1770.

The sign says that Hillside was founded in 1882, but there's little evidence as far as headstones go.

Small album, circa 1890, of mostly unlabeled photos. The first photo is of an "Asa Knickerbocker" so I'm calling it the Knickerbocker album for lack of information.

A "walking tour" (of sorts) of lovely Laurel Hill Cemetery, Ridge Ave., Philadelphia, PA. (Various dates, starting with 31 July 2005.)

Taken between 4 and 5pm.

Almost everyone buried there is a relative. Ah, the wonders of the South Jersey gene pool.
Taken at various times of the year.

Mount Moriah is *huge.* Simply huge. And god, but it's beautiful--even if it is tragically neglected.

Taken at various times.

Trenton, NJ

Not sure who most of these people are, as none of the photos are labeled, but I know