Photograph courtesy of Michigan State Historic Preservation Office
Highland Cemetery
Michigan, Reference number: 100005026
Area of Significance: Social History, Community Planning and Development, Art, Architecture, Landscape Architecture
Period of Significance: 1863-1965
The nomination does an excellent job of describing the design aspects of this “rural movement” cemetery in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It highlights the layout of the cemetery and the numerous examples of funerary architecture and art. it also discusses how the creation of the cemetery was in response to the growth of the community and the inadequacy of the various small burial grounds that preceded it. In Social History, the nomination provides an excellent background in the cemetery’s role in the city’s annual Memorial Day commemoration.
Photograph Alana Fernandez-Busto and Julie Kramer, courtesy of Ohio State Historic Preservation Office
Ohio, Reference number: 100010203
Area of Significance: Social History, Community Planning and Development, Art, Architecture, Community Planning and Development, Landscape Architecture
Period of Significance: 1879-1901
The Oakdale Cemetery Historic District is significant in the areas of Landscape Architecture, Architecture, and Community Planning and Development at the local level. The period of significance is 1879-1901. Under Landscape Architecture, this property is associated with prominent landscape designer Herman Haerlin. Recognized nationally, Haerlin’s designs came to be rooted in the ideals of Frederick Law Olmsted and the recuperative power of natural landscapes. The early design of Oakdale Cemetery is reflective of the use of natural landscape features and topography in the layout of the grounds and roadways which were characteristic of this tradition. Under Architecture, the Public Vault at Oakdale Cemetery embodies the distinctive characteristics of the property type associated with receiving vaults which are reflective of nineteenth century funerary practices. The property is eligible under Community Development and Planning for its association with patterns of growth of the late 19th century as rural populations outgrew their existing capacity and adapted infrastructure and public spaces to serve the growing needs and priorities of their population. Link to file
Last updated: June 20, 2024