Calvary Cemetery - St. Louis, Missouri
Posted by: BruceS
N 38° 41.677 W 090° 14.306
15S E 740173 N 4286508
Historic Catholic cemetery in north St Louis where many notable people from St. Louis's history are buried.
Waymark Code: WM31RA
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 01/26/2008
Views: 41
From Missouri - A Guide to the "Show Me" State - St. Louis section:
CALVARY CEMETERY, 5239 W. Florissant Ave., containing 476
acres, is the larges in St. Louis. A Catholic cemetery, it was founded in
1864. North of the entrance is the grave of General William Tecumseh
Sherman, and in the east section is that of Alexander McNair, Missouri's first
Governor. The cemetery also contains the grave of Auguste Chouteu, one of
the founders of St. Louis, and the beautiful tomb of Thomas Biddle, Philadelphia
army officer who was killed in a duel with Congressman Spencer Pettis of St.
Louis, in 1831.
Calvary Cemetery was built following the 1849 cholera outbreak
in St. Louis and it was ordered that all cemeteries be located outside the city
limits. Most of the Catholic cemeteries in the city were filled to
capacity due to the outbreak. In 1853, Archbishop Kenrick purchased the 323-acre
Old Orchard frame from Kentucky politician Henry Clay. The Archbishop
established his own farm on the western portion and the cemetery was created on
the eastern portion. Over the years the cemetery acquired more land
including the farm and now totals 477 acres. The cemetery contains over
315,000 graves including many which were moved to this cemetery from
others in the city including several from around the Old Cathedral near the Arch
which were moved in 1950. The cemetery like its neighboring
Bellefontaine Cemetery is the final resting place of many notable people in the
history of St. Louis, along with those listed in the Guide among the notables
are Dred Scott, author Kate Chopin, and playwright Tennessee Williams.