Riverside Cemetery is a historic

rural cemetery A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-nineteenth century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries. They were typically built one to five ...

located at 496 Riverside Street in

Waterbury, Connecticut Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 20 ...

on the western bank of the

Naugatuck River The Naugatuck River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Its waters carve out the Naugatuck River Valley in the wes ...

. Dedicated on September 24, 1853, it is in size and includes winding tree-lined paths, upper and lower ponds and an array of funerary monuments in the

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

, neo-classical, and romantic style. The property also includes many older burials and headstones dating back to the late 1700s which were relocated from the defunct Grand Street burial ground. The cemetery was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1988.

History

From the late 1700s to the mid 1800s, burials in Waterbury took place at the old burial grounds now known as Library Park on Grand Street. The first suggestion for a new cemetery in Waterbury was made in 1849 by Dr. Amos S. Blake. An association was formed on March 6, 1850 and money was raised through the sale of burial lots. The bronze statue,

Wisdom Wisdom, sapience, or sagacity is the ability to contemplate and act using knowledge, experience, understanding, common sense and insight. Wisdom is associated with attributes such as unbiased judgment, compassion, experiential self-knowledge, ...

, on the Benedict family monument was designed by Truman Howe Bartlett in 1871 and sculpted by

Ferdinand von Miller Ferdinand von Miller (18 October 1813 – 11 February 1887) was a German artisan who is noted for his furtherance of bronze founding. Biography Von Miller was born in Fürstenfeldbruck. After a sojourn at the academy in Munich and a preliminar ...

in 1872.

Riverside Cemetery Waterbury Chapel and Gate

The modern Gothic Hall Memorial Chapel was designed by noted Waterbury architect Robert W. Hill and completed in 1885. The monument to Civil War Colonel

John Lyman Chatfield John Lyman Chatfield was a Union Army colonel in the American Civil War. He was mortally wounded while assaulting Fort Wagner, South Carolina on July 18, 1863, and died on August 9, 1863. Early life Chatfield was born September 13, 1826, at Oxfor ...

was designed by

George Edwin Bissell George Edwin Bissell (February 16, 1839 – August 30, 1920) was an American sculptor. Biography Bissell was born New Preston, Connecticut, the son of a quarryman and marble-cutter. During the American Civil War he served as a private in the 2 ...

and was unveiled at a ceremony on September 13, 1887. The Elton Memorial Vase sits at the entrance of the cemetery. It was designed by George Edwin Bissell and

cast Cast may refer to: Music * Cast (band), an English alternative rock band * Cast (Mexican band), a progressive Mexican rock band * The Cast, a Scottish musical duo: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis * ''Cast'', a 2012 album by Trespassers William * ...

by Fonderia Galli in 1905. The bronze monument depicts four scenes from the

Life of Christ The life of Jesus in the New Testament is primarily outlined in the four canonical gospels, which includes his genealogy and Nativity of Jesus, nativity, Ministry of Jesus, public ministry, Passion of Jesus, passion, prophecy, Resurrection of ...

. The first side depicts the adoration of the Wise Men; the second side, the

Crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagin ...

; the third side, the

entombment Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

; and the fourth side, the

Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, which ...

. Decorative figures carrying wreaths form the handles with the vase supported by cherubs. The large bronze figures on the side of the vase depict

Grief Grief is the response to loss, particularly to the loss of someone or some living thing that has died, to which a bond or affection was formed. Although conventionally focused on the emotional response to loss, grief also has physical, cogni ...

and

Faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

Notable Burials

Ruth Muskrat Bronson Ruth Muskrat Bronson (October 3, 1897 – June 12, 1982) was a Cherokee poet, educator and Indian rights activist. After completing her education, Bronson became the first Guidance and Placement Officer of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. She serve ...

(1897-1982),

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

poet, educator and Native-American rights activist * Calvin Holmes Carter (1829 -1887), politician *

Franklin Carter Franklin Carter (September 30, 1837 – November 22, 1919) was an American professor of Germanic and romance languages and served as President of Williams College from 1881 to 1901. Carter was born September 30, 1837, in Waterbury, Connecticut, ...

(1837 -1919), president of Williams College *

(1826 -1863), U.S. Civil War Union Army Colonel *

Augustus Sabin Chase Augustus Sabin Chase (August 15, 1828—June 7, 1896) was an American industrialist of the Gilded Age. Augustus Sabin Chase was born in Pomfret, Connecticut, the only son of Capt. Seth Chase (1798-1893) and Eliza Hempstead (Dodge) Chase, who also ...

(1828 -1896), industrialist *

John Prince Elton John Prince Elton (April 15, 1809 – November 10, 1864) was an American businessman. Biography He was born in Watertown, Connecticut, in 1809 to Dr. Samuel and Betsey Elton. He moved to Waterbury, Connecticut, in 1832 and was instrumental in its ...

(1809 -1864), industrialist *

Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (1931 film) ...

, (1743 -1798), African-American slave * Edward Wheeler Goss (1893 -1972), U.S. Congressman * Wilfred E. Griggs (1866-1918), architect * Robert W. Hill (1828 -1909), architect * David Hoadley (1774 -1839), architect *

Stephen Wright Kellogg Stephen Wright Kellogg (b. Shelburne, Massachusetts, April 5, 1822 – d. Waterbury, Connecticut, January 27, 1904) was an American politician, attorney, military officer and judge.http://www.cslib.org/memorials/kelloggs.htm He worked on his fa ...

(1822 -1904), U.S. Congressman * Green Kendrick (1798 -1873), 43rd Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut * George L. Lilley (1859 -1909), U.S. Congressman, 63rd Governor of Connecticut *

William Hampton Patton William Hampton Patton (March 10, 1853 – December 26, 1918) was an American entomologist. Biography Patton was born on March 10, 1853, at Waterbury, Connecticut, to William and Sarah Frances Patton. He graduated from Waterbury High School in ...

(1853-1918), entomologist * Charles A. Templeton (1871-1955), 68th Governor of Connecticut *

Allen B. Wilson Allen Benjamin Wilson (1823–1888) was an American inventor famous for designing, building and patenting some of the first successful sewing machines. He invented both the '' vibrating'' and the ''rotating'' shuttle designs which, in turns, ...

(1823 -1888), inventor and sewing machine manufacturer

Gallery

File:Monument to Edward Leach (Elk Statue by Eli Harvey), Riverside Cemetery, Waterbury, CT - September 2014.JPG, Monument to Edward Leach (Elk Statue by Eli Harvey), Riverside Cemetery, Waterbury, CT - September 2014, The bronze elk statue by

Eli Harvey Eli Harvey (September 23, 1860 – February 10, 1957) was an American sculptor, painter and animalier. Biography Harvey was born in Ogden, Ohio, a Quaker community in Clinton County, Ohio, Clinton County, to William P. and Nancy M. Harvey. He ...

adorns the grave of Edward Leach, exalted ruler of New York Elk Lodge No. 1 File:John Lyman Chatfield Monument by George Edwin Bissell, Riverside Cemetery, Waterbury, CT - February 2016.JPG, The

Monument by

was unveiled in 1887 File:Booth Statue.jpg, The Booth monument File:Benedict Monument by Ferdinand von Miller, Riverside Cemetery, Waterbury, CT - January 2016.JPG, The statue, Wisdom, on the Benedict Family Monument was designed by Truman Howe Bartlett and sculpted by

File:High view.jpg, A view from the hill

Citations

References

* *

External links

Riverside Cemetery
at

Find A Grave Find a Grave is a website that allows the public to search and add to an online database of cemetery records. It is owned by Ancestry.com. Its stated mission is "to help people from all over the world work together to find, record and present fin ...

Riverside Cemetery Association websiteNational Register of Historic Places listing
{{National Register of Historic Places 1853 establishments in Connecticut Buildings and structures in Waterbury, Connecticut Cemeteries established in the 1850s Cemeteries in New Haven County, Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in New Haven County, Connecticut Rural cemeteries