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Cypress Hills Cemetery (Images of America)
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About Cypress Hills Cemetery
Product Description For the past 162 years, historic Cypress Hills Cemetery has quietly served thousands of New Yorkers and the public at large. This place of eternal rest obtained the distinct honor of being the first rural cemetery in Greater New York to be organized under the Rural Cemetery Act of 1847. Cypress Hills provides a perfect balance of lush landscaping, funerary art and sculpture, and a final resting place for some of America's most notable figures, such as Jackie Robinson, Mae West, and Eubie Blake. Carved on countless headstones are mysterious markings and secretive symbols that the living can ponder. Cypress Hills Cemetery illustrates and demystifies the various legends of those interred in these hallowed grounds. Review Title: Queens Cemetery Honored In BookAuthor: DOMENICK RAFTERPublisher: Queens TribuneDate: 9/9/2010When the body of David Fay Corey, the first of more than 35,000 buried at Cypress Hills Cemetery, was laid to rest on Dec. 11, 1848, the area surrounding his gravesite was rural and undeveloped. Today a bustling metropolis Â- one Corey would not even recognize Â- surrounds him.A new book, authored by Richmond Hill resident Stephen Duer and historian Allan Smith, chronicles the history of the famed cemetery that straddles the border of Queens and Brooklyn between Woodhaven and Ridgewood in words and photos, and for co-author Duer, the book sparked a new passion that he hopes to continue exploring.The book, the latest from Arcadia Publishing, presents a pictorial and written history of the cemetery including prominent people buried there like Mae West, steakhouse namesake Peter Luger, and Gavin Cato, the child whose death triggered the 1991 Crown Heights riot. The book also covers the cemeteryÂ's milestone moments, such as when the Jackie Robinson Parkway was built through the site, forcing some people to be reinterred.The book focuses much of its attention on specific tombstones and their unique designs, including one designed to look like a Bible, another shaped like a tree trunk, and the grave of Eubie Blake, which includes a cast of his face.The book came about almost by accident, Duer said. He accidently stumbled upon Cypress Hills one day while looking for the national cemetery, was intrigued by it and asked the cemeteryÂ's office manager if he would be interested in helping him out with a book about it. Duer teamed up with Smith, who showed him around the cemetery and Duer eventually asked him to be co-author.Duer said he wrote the book hoping to present cemeteries in a different light.Â"Most people see cemeteries as morbid,Â" Duer said. Â"I donÂ't see them in any way like that; I see cemeteries in a different way. TheyÂ're historical treasures and chock-full of interesting storiesÂ".Duer said society loves monuments, which is what tombstones really are, and he wanted to present cemeteries as sites for monuments for those who have died, rather than resting places for their bodies. He said he hopes to continue doing research and explorations in cemeteries in Queens and writing about them, though some cemeteries have been resistant to having their history documented.Â"There are more deceased people in Queens than living,Â" Duer said, pointing out that there are 5.5 million burials in the borough and 2.3 million residents. Â"ItÂ's a morbid thought, and I donÂ't want to be seen as a morbid person. IÂ'm looking to bring these people back to life through photos and stories.Â" About the Author Stephen C. Duer has owned and operated his own sightseeing tourcompany, Marvelous Manhattan Tours, for the past 20 years. Known for his knowledge and enthusiastic upbeat style, his passion forcemeteries led him to create Cemetery Nation, which explores allaspects of this intriguing subject. Allan B. Smith, a retired architect, is a local historian and trustee of the Queens Historical Society. He is also an active member of several other historical and preservation societies and a res
