|
701 East Ross Ave.
Cincinnati, OH 45217
(513) 242-4191
Our Services
Special Offers
St. Mary Mausoleum
History
Snapshots
Maps and Directions
Arboretum Fund
Contact Us
|
St. Mary Cemetery in St. Bernard
owes its existence to the careful planning by trustees of the German
Catholic Cemetery Society, now the Cincinnati Catholic Cemetery Society.
The trustees saw that the day would come when space would be at a
premium at nearby St. John's Cemetery.
In 1873, the German Catholic Cemetery Society
purchased 111 acres from the Kemper family on Ross Avenue. More than
15,000 people attended the dedication of the cemetery in early November
1873. Archbishop John Purcell, who had dedicated the other two German
Catholic Cemeteries a quarter of a century earlier, performed the
blessing.
After the dedication of St. Mary, The Order of Friars Minor
--
Franciscans - began using the cemetery. Prior to 1881, the yard around
St. Clement had been used for the Franciscans. These remains were
removed and reinterred at St. Mary's. Today the Franciscans use an area
near the Mausoleum for burials.
Many burials at St. Mary cemetery illustrate life's
tragedies. A crucifix-topped monument shadows dozens of tiny headstones
for orphans from St. Aloysius Orphanage who died in the late 1800s. The
orphan lot sits in the center.
Several monuments honor individuals lost at sea. One
memorializes two brothers of the Abbing family who went down with the
Titanic. Another commemorates William B. Schmidt whose submarine was
lost in the Pacific during World War II. Another spot holds the remains
of another William Schmidt buried in 1888, who received a Medal of Honor
for heroic action at Missionary Ridge, Tenn., during the Civil War.
By far the most wide-spread tragedy was the flu
epidemic of 1918. More that 1,100 burials took place at St. Mary's that
year, including 23 on a single day, Oct. 28, 1918.
St. Mary has seen three superintendent's houses, the
latest one being built in 1962. This facility now provides offices for
the CCCS and a general cemetery office for Director of Operations,
Arthur Abrams.
|