Lawnview Memorial Park, also referred to as Lawnview Cemetery, is a cemetery located at 500 Huntingdon Pike in

Rockledge, Pennsylvania Rockledge is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,638 as of the 2020 census. Rockledge is surrounded by Abington Township, and Philadelphia, and shares a ZIP Code with Jenkintown. Geography Accordin ...

. It is 82 acres in size and is managed by the Odd Fellows Cemetery Company of Philadelphia. It contains the reburial of tens of thousands of bodies from

Monument Cemetery Monument Cemetery was a rural cemetery located at the current day intersection of Broad and Berks Street in North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1837 to 1956. It was the second rural cemetery in Philadelphia after Laurel Hill Cemetery. It was ...

and the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Philadelphia after they were closed in the 1950s.

History

In 1904, the cemetery was established in Rockledge, Pennsylvania. In 1914, a stone chapel was built to provide non-denominational services for funerals. In 1956,

in Philadelphia was closed and the property sold to

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

and the Philadelphia Board of Education. The University contacted 748 families about the cemetery closure. Approximately 28,000 bodies were reinterred to Lawnview Memorial Park with only 300 grave markers included in the move for families members that were located. Most of the reinterrments were placed in a

mass grave A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of execution, although an exact ...

. The original headstones were not used at the new grave sites. Most of the remaining headstones were used as

riprap Riprap (in North American English), also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armour (in British English) or rubble, is human-placed rock or other material used to protect shoreline structures against scour and water, wave, or ice erosion. ...

during the construction of the

Betsy Ross Bridge The Betsy Ross Bridge, also known as the Ross Memorial Bridge, is a continuous steel truss bridge spanning the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Pennsauken, New Jersey. It was built from 1969 to 1974, and opened in April 1976, du ...

and can be seen on the shores of the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...

at low tide. In 1951, the Oddfellows Cemetery in Philadelphia was acquired by the

Philadelphia Housing Authority The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) is a municipal authority providing Public housing services in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the fourth-largest housing authority in the United States and is the largest landlord in Pennsylvania. PHA ho ...

for construction of the Raymond Rosen

housing project Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authorities, government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the d ...

. The bodies were moved to two other cemeteries owned by the Odd Fellows -

Mount Peace Cemetery Mount Peace Cemetery is a cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that is owned and operated by the Odd Fellows organization. It was established in 1865 and is located at 3111 West Lehigh Avenue, near the Laurel Hill Cemetery. The cemetery prope ...

in Philadelphia and Lawnview Memorial Park. In 1973, the Oddfellows Cemetery Company of Philadelphia installed a flag pole in Lawnview Memorial Park with a memorial plaque commemorating veterans buried in Lawnview and other current and defunct Oddfellows cemeteries in the Philadelphia region. In 1979, the chapel was converted to the Odd Fellows Cemetery Company's general offices.

Notable burials

DeWitt Clinton Baxter DeWitt Clinton Baxter (1829–1881) was an American artist and engraver. He also served as colonel and brevet brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Early life DeWitt Clinton Baxter was born March 9, 1829, in Dorches ...

(1829-1881), Union Army colonel and brevet brigadier general * Henry Brutsche (1846-1880),

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

recipient *

John Hull Campbell John Hull Campbell (October 10, 1800 – January 19, 1868) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who was an American Party member in the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 3rd congressional district from 1845 to 1847. Earl ...

(1800-1868), U.S. Congressman * John E. Clopp (1845-1866), Medal of Honor recipient *

Thomas Birch Florence Thomas Birch Florence (January 26, 1812 – July 3, 1875) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Biography Thomas B. Florence born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He learned the hatter's trade and engaged ...

(1812-1875), U.S. Congressman * Andy Knox (1864-1940), Major League Baseball first baseman *

James Landy James Landy (October 13, 1813 – July 25, 1875) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Biography James Landy was born in Northern Liberties District in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended the publ ...

(1813-1875), U.S. Congressman *

George Lippard George Lippard (April 10, 1822February 9, 1854) was a 19th-century American novelist, journalist, playwright, social activist, and labor organizer. He was a popular author in antebellum America. A friend of Edgar Allan Poe, Lippard advocated a s ...

(1822-1854), novelist, journalist, playwright, social activist and labor organizer *

Henry Dunning Moore Henry Dunning Moore (April 13, 1817 – August 11, 1887) was a Whig member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Early life Henry D. Moore was born in Goshen, New York. He moved with his parents to New York City in 1828. He a ...

(1817-1887), U.S. Congressman * Charles Frederick Pracht (1880-1950), U.S. Congressman *

Hampton S. Thomas Hampton Sidney Thomas (November 3, 1837 – May 21, 1899) was a United States soldier who fought with the Union Army as a major in the 1st Pennsylvania Cavalry during the American Civil War. He received his country's highest award for valor, the Me ...

(1837-1899), Medal of Honor recipient * Harold Charles Wilson (1903-1981), Olympic Bronze Medalist in rowing

Gallery

File:Flag Memorial to Veterans at Lawnview Memorial Park.jpg, Flag Memorial to Veterans File:Marquis Lafayette Memorial from Monument Cemetery in Philadelphia. Moved to Lawnview Cemetery in 1956.jpg, The bronze profile of the

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemason and military officer who fought in the American Revoluti ...

originally from the Memorial in

in Philadelphia. It was originally dedicated in 1869 and moved to Lawnview Cemetery in 1956 File:George Washington Memorial from Monument Cemetery in Philadelphia. Originally dedicated in 1869. Moved to Lawnview Memorial Park in 1956.jpg, The bronze profile of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

originally from the memorial in Monument Cemetery in Philadelphia. It was originally dedicated in 1869 and moved to Lawnview Memorial Park in 1956

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lanwview Memorial Park 1904 establishments in Pennsylvania Cemeteries in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Mass graves Odd Fellows cemeteries in the United States