Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery in

Colma, California Colma (Ohlone for "Springs") is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 1,507 at the 2020 census. The town was founded as a necropolis in 1924. ...

is an American

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

cemetery operated by the

Archdiocese of San Francisco The Archdiocese of San Francisco (Latin: ''Archdiœcesis Sancti Francisci''; Spanish: ''Archidiócesis de San Francisco'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the northern California region of the Unite ...

. Established in 1887 on of a former potato farm, it is the oldest and largest cemetery established in Colma to serve the needs of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

History

Several notable people are buried at Holy Cross, including former politicians, and people of the

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California f ...

. Many of the people interred at the Catholic Calvary Cemetery of San Francisco, were reburied between 1937 and 1945 at Holy Cross in a project to relocate graves outside of the city. There is a memorial sculpture features three crosses and reads: “Interred here are the remains of 39,307 Catholics moved from Mt. Calvary Cemetery in 1940 and 1941 by order of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Rest in God’s Loving Care.” This cemetery also contains one British Commonwealth war grave, of a Canadian Infantry soldier of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Two of the three cemetery sequences in the film

Harold and Maude ''Harold and Maude'' is a 1971 American romantic black comedy–drama film directed by Hal Ashby and released by Paramount Pictures. It incorporates elements of dark humor and existentialist drama. The plot follows the exploits of Harold Chas ...

were filmed here.

Notable burials

A

Joseph Alemany Joseph Sadoc Alemany y Conill, O.P. (Spanish: José Sadoc Alemany y Conill; July 3, 1814 – April 14, 1888) was a Spanish Catholic clergyman, who served most of his career in California. He served as the first Bishop of Monterey (1850–53) a ...

, San Francisco's first archbishop * Joseph Alioto, Mayor of San Francisco (1968-1976) *

Pedro Altube Pedro de Altube Idigoras (April 27, 1827 – August 8, 1905) was a Basque-born American rancher who established, along with his brother Bernardo, the renowned Spanish Ranch in northwestern Nevada. Pedro Altube and his brother Bernardo had emigrate ...

, rancher *

Delos R. Ashley Delos Rodeyn Ashley (February 19, 1828 – July 18, 1873) was a California and Nevada politician who served as State Treasurer of California and a member of the United States House of Representatives from Nevada. Biography Ashley was born at A ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

U.S. Representative

B

Winifred Bonfils Winifred Sweet Black Bonfils (October 14, 1863, Chilton, Wisconsin – May 25, 1936, San Francisco, California) was an American reporter and columnist, under the pen name Annie Laurie, a reference to her mother's favorite lullaby. She also wrote u ...

, reporter and columnist *

Jimmy Britt Jimmy Britt (October 5, 1879, in San Francisco, California – January 21, 1940) was a boxer from 1902 to 1909. He fought Joe Gans twice for the World lightweight title but lost both bouts. In a career spanning 23 bouts, Britt met 6 different Ha ...

, boxer *

Pat Brown Edmund Gerald "Pat" Brown (April 21, 1905 – February 16, 1996) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 32nd governor of California from 1959 to 1967. His first elected office was as district attorney for San Francisco, and he w ...

, 32nd

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, t ...

Benny Bufano Beniamino "Bene" Bufano (October 15, 1890August 18, 1970) was an Italian American sculptor, best known for his large-scale monuments representing peace and his modernist work often featured smoothly rounded animals and relatively simple shapes ...

, sculptor

C

* Joe Carcione, "The Green Grocer" columnist and personality *

Eugene Casserly Eugene Casserly (November 13, 1820June 14, 1883) was an Irish-born American journalist, lawyer, and politician. He was the son of scholar Patrick S. Casserly, and he served in the United States Senate from California. Biography Eugene Casserl ...

, U.S. Senator * John Chapman, Civil War soldier,

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 val ...

recipient * Joe Corbett,

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB) pitcher *

Frank Crosetti Frank Peter Joseph Crosetti (October 4, 1910 – February 11, 2002) was an American baseball shortstop. Nicknamed "The Crow", he spent his entire seventeen-year Major League Baseball playing career with the New York Yankees before becoming a coac ...

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

MLB player, teammate of

Joe DiMaggio Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...

D

* Michael de Young, co-founder of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The pa ...

'', namesake of the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum. *

(1914–1999), MLB player, Hall of Fame member * John G. Downey, 7th

E

Eddie Erdelatz Edward J. Erdelatz (April 21, 1913 – November 10, 1966) was an American collegiate and professional football player and coach who served as head football coach of the U.S. Naval Academy for nine years. Erdelatz was also the first head coach of ...

, first head coach of

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Ra ...

football team

F

* James Graham Fair, Bonanza King, U.S. Senator *

Cy Falkenberg Frederick Peter "Cy" Falkenberg (December 17, 1879 – April 15, 1961) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1903 to 1917 for the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League, the Washington ...

, baseball player *

Abigail Folger Abigail () was an Israelite woman in the Hebrew Bible married to Nabal; she married the future King David after Nabal's death (1 Samuel ). Abigail was David's second wife, after Saul and Ahinoam's daughter, Michal, whom Saul later married ...

, Heiress, socialite,

Manson Manson is a surname of Scottish origin.''Manson'' in the Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, p.508 It is an Anglicised version of the Scandinavian name Magnusson, meaning son of Magnus, and a Sept of Clan Gunn. It is part ...

murder victim * Edwin Alexander Forbes, Adjutant-General of California *

Kathryn Forbes Kathryn McLean (née Anderson) (March 20, 1908 – May 15, 1966), best known by her pen name Kathryn Forbes, was an American writer and memoirist. Life Kathryn Anderson was born in San Francisco in 1908. Her grandmother emigrated to California fro ...

, writer *

Tirey L. Ford Tirey Lafayette Ford (December 29, 1857 – June 26, 1928) was an American lawyer and Republican politician who served as a California State Senator and the 18th Attorney-General of California. He acted as General Counsel for the United Railr ...

, Attorney-General for California * Charlie Fox, MLB manager, coach, and scout

G

* Oliver Gagliani (1917–2002) photographer, and educator * A.P. Giannini, founder of

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The bank ...

Charlie Geggus Charles Frederick Geggus (March 25, 1862 – January 16, 1917), was a professional baseball player who pitched and played center field for one season in Major League Baseball. He played for the Washington Nationals of the Union Association ...

, MLB player, who played one season for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

of the

Union Association The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for just the 1884 season. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season. Seven of the twelve teams who were in the Association at some poi ...

Vince Guaraldi Vincent Anthony Guaraldi (; né Dellaglio, July 17, 1928 – February 6, 1976) was an American jazz pianist best known for composing music for animated television adaptations of the ''Peanuts'' comic strip. His compositions for this series includ ...

, jazz musician known for composing music for animated television adaptations of the ''

Peanuts ''Peanuts'' is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ''Peanuts'' is among the most popular and inf ...

'' comic strip including their signature melody, "

Linus and Lucy "Linus and Lucy" is a popular instrumental jazz standard written by American jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi, appearing in many ''Peanuts'' animated specials. Named for the two fictional siblings Linus and Lucy van Pelt, it was originally released o ...

H

Edward Joseph Hanna Edward Joseph Hanna (July 21, 1860 – July 10, 1944) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of San Francisco from 1915 to 1935. Early life and education Edward Hanna was born in Rochester, New York, to ...

, San Francisco's Third Archbishop * Michael A. Healy, American Captain in United States Revenue Cutter (predecessor of the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, m ...

) * William Edward Hickman, American convicted murderer *

Edward Higgins Edward John Higgins (26 November 1864 – 14 December 1947) was the third General of The Salvation Army (1929–1934). He was born in Highbridge, Somerset, England. His father became a much revered Commissioner in the Army's ranks, ...

, General of the Salvation Army *

Eric Hoffer Eric Hoffer (July 25, 1902 – May 21, 1983) was an American moral and social philosopher. He was the author of ten books and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in February 1983. His first book, '' The True Believer'' (1951), was wide ...

, American moral and social philosopher

I

* Samuel Williams Inge, U.S. Representative for

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

K

Paul Kantner Paul Lorin Kantner (March 17, 1941 – January 28, 2016) was an American rock musician. He is best known as the co-founder, rhythm guitarist, and vocalist of Jefferson Airplane, a leading psychedelic rock band of the counterculture era. He cont ...

, guitarist for

Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, that became one of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock. Formed in 1965, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the Bay Area to ach ...

* George Kelly, MLB Hall of Famer

L

Bill Lange William Alexander Lange (; June 6, 1871 – July 23, 1950), also known as "Little Eva",Robbins, p. 194 was an American Major League Baseball center fielder, who played his entire seven-year career for the Chicago Colts and Orphans from t ...

, MLB player for

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

(1893–1899) * William Joseph Levada, San Francisco's Seventh Archbishop,

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

emeritus of the

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsib ...

(elevated to

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

in 2006)

M

Ralph Maradiaga Ralph Maradiaga (1934–1985) was an American artist, curator, photographer, printmaker, teacher, and filmmaker. He was Chicano, one of the co-founders of Galería de la Raza and part of the San Francisco Bay Area Chicano Art Movement. Biograp ...

(1934–1985), Chicano artist, printmaker, muralist * Leo McCarthy, former California Lieutenant Governor * Pete McDonough, bail bondsmen * James A. McDougall. U.S. Senator *

Joseph Thomas McGucken Joseph Thomas McGucken (March 13, 1902 – October 6, 1983) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles (1941–1955), coadjutor bishop and bishop of the Diocese of Sa ...

, San Francisco's Fifth Archbishop * Theresa Meikle, first woman elected to Superior Court Judge in a major American city * John J. Mitty, San Francisco's Fourth Archbishop * John J. Montgomery, pioneer aviator, aerodynamicist, and physicist; first American to fly in a heavier-than-air machine *

Maggie Moore Maggie Moore (April 10, 1851 – March 15, 1926) was an American-Australian actress born as Margaret Virginia Sullivan. She met and married producer J. C. Williamson in the U.S. and became popular as an actress in their production of '' Struc ...

, silent film actress * George Moscone, Mayor of San Francisco

N

George Hugh Niederauer George Hugh Niederauer (June 14, 1936 – May 2, 2017) was an American bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the Archbishop of San Francisco. Before that, Niederauer served as Bishop of Salt Lake City from 1994 to 2005. Biography Geor ...

, San Francisco's Eighth Archbishop *

John I. Nolan John Ignatius Nolan (January 14, 1874 – November 18, 1922) was an American iron molder and politician who represented a Californian district in the United States House of Representatives from 1913 to 1922. Background He was born in ...

, U.S. Representative *

Mae Nolan Mae Ella Nolan (September 20, 1886 – July 9, 1973) was an American politician who became the fourth woman to serve in the United States Congress, the first woman elected to Congress from California, the first woman to chair a Congressional ...

, California's first female congressperson

O

* William S. O'Brien, Bonanza King *

Bryan O'Byrne Bryan Jay O'Byrne (February 6, 1931 – December 4, 2009) was an American film and television character actor and acting coach. His credits include numerous television shows, films and many television commercials. Biography Early life O'Byrne ...

, actor * M.M. O'Shaughnessy, San Francisco city engineer

P

* James D. Phelan, Mayor of San Francisco, U.S. Senator * Ralph Pinelli, MLB player

Q

John Raphael Quinn John Raphael Quinn (March 28, 1929 – June 22, 2017) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of San Francisco from 1977 to 1995 and Archbishop of Oklahoma City (and Bishop of the predecessor Diocese) from 1 ...

, San Francisco's Sixth Archbishop

R

* Patrick William Riordan, San Francisco's Second Archbishop *

Angelo Joseph Rossi Angelo Joseph Rossi (January 22, 1878 – April 5, 1948) was a U.S. political figure who served as the 31st mayor of San Francisco. Life and career Rossi was born in Volcano, Amador County, California, and came to San Francisco in 1890 with ...

, Mayor of San Francisco (1931–1944) * Pietro Carlo Rossi, wine maker and first President Italian Swiss Colony

S

Hank Sauer Henry John Sauer (March 17, 1917 – August 24, 2001) was an American professional baseball player, coach and scout. He appeared in 1,399 games, primarily as a left fielder, in Major League Baseball ( MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds (1941–1942, 194 ...

, MLB player *

Eugene Schmitz Eugene Edward Schmitz (August 22, 1864 – November 20, 1928), often referenced as "Handsome Gene" Schmitz, was an American musician and politician, the 26th mayor of San Francisco (1902-7), who was in office during the 1906 San Francisco earthqu ...

, Mayor of San Francisco (1902–1907) *

Fred Scolari Fred Joseph Scolari (March 1, 1922 – October 17, 2002) was an American professional basketball player. At 5'10", he played the point guard position. Though he was blind in one eye, deaf in one ear and often overweight, "Fat Freddie" excelled i ...

, professional basketball player *

John F. Shelley John Francis Shelley (September 3, 1905 – September 1, 1974) was a U.S. politician. He served as the 35th mayor of San Francisco, from 1964 to 1968, the first Democrat elected to the office in 50 years, and the first in an unbroken lin ...

, Mayor of San Francisco (1964–1968) *

William M. Stewart William Morris Stewart (August 9, 1827April 23, 1909) was an American lawyer and politician. In 1964, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Personal Stewart was born in Wayne Count ...

, U.S. Senator

T

Ethel Teare Ethel Teare (January 11, 1894 – March 4, 1959) was an American silent film actress from Phoenix, Arizona. Screen comedian Her first film appearances came in 1914. She performed in ''The Widow's Might'', ''Fatty and the Shyster Lawyer'', ''T ...

, American silent film actress

W

Richard J. Welch Richard Joseph Welch (February 13, 1869 – September 10, 1949) was an American county clerk and politician. He sat in the United States House of Representatives for 12 terms from 1926 to 1949, serving a district in San Francisco, California. B ...

, U.S. Representative *

Kaisik Wong Kaisik Wong (1950 – 1990) was a Chinese-American fashion designer. He was best known for his patchwork vest, which was plagiarized for Balenciaga's Spring/Summer 2002 collection. Wong emerged from San Francisco wearable art movement in the ea ...

, fashion designer * William J. Wynn, U.S. Representative

Z

Frank Zupo Frank Joseph Zupo (August 29, 1939 – March 25, 2005), nicknamed "Noodles", was an American professional baseball player. A catcher, he appeared in 16 games over parts of three seasons in Major League Baseball for the Baltimore Orioles in 1957� ...

, MLB player with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

References

External links

Official website
- interment.net {{Authority control Cemeteries in San Mateo County, California Protected areas of San Mateo County, California Roman Catholic cemeteries in California Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco