St. Mary's Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)
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| St. Mary's Cemetery | |
|---|---|
 Part of the entrance, 2024 | |
 | |
| Details | |
| Established | March 25, 1870 |
| Location | 2121 Lincoln Road NE, Washington, D.C., 20002 |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 38°55′18″N 77°0′22″W / 38.92167°N 77.00611°W |
St. Mary's Cemetery (also known as the Saint Mary Mother of God German Catholic Church Cemetery and the St. Mary's German Catholic Cemetery)[1][2] is a Catholic cemetery in Washington, D.C., United States, overseen by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington.
History
[edit]St. Mary's Cemetery was consecrated on March 25, 1870, the day of the Feast of the Annunciation, following a march from the church by several community groups and sermons in both German and English.[3][4] Its neighbor immediately to the east is Glenwood Cemetery.[5][6][7] In an 1882 obituary for the Saint Mary, Mother of God Catholic Church parish priest, Mathias Alig, who had served for almost 40 years, it was called "the new Metropolis (German Catholic) Cemetery."[8]
The District of Columbia's Office of Planning says: "Established in 1875 initially to serve German congregants of the church that dated to 1846, later also accepted a large number of Greek and Italian burials; initially located on O Street between North Capitol and 1st Streets, NE."[1] Another source places the first graveyard on "O north between North Capitol and 3rd west."[9]
According to The Washington Post: "Gates are open daily from sunrise to sunset. Originally this was a cemetery for St. Mary Mother of God Parish, established in 1845 at 725 Fifth St. NW. This was a working-class cemetery first for German butchers, bakers and others, later for Italians who were stonecutters and laborers. The oldest gravestone is dated Nov. 16, 1862."[10]
Circa 1901, a destitute 60-year-old man known only as Frenchy lived in adjacent to St. Mary's Cemetery, originally in a hand-dug cave in the woods and later in a stable situated on the fenceline. He was possibly a veteran of the Franco-Prussian War, and he decorated his coat with bits of metal he found discarded on the grounds. Frenchy spent his Sundays visiting every Catholic Church in the city, ending his day with prayers in the St. Mary's graveyard.[11]
During World War I, which saw an increase in anti-German sentiment in the United States, German-American veterans of the American Civil War showcased their patriotism by marching with flags and decorating the graves of veterans buried at St. Mary's Cemetery.[12] The gesture was apparently ineffectual as Congress passed a law banning Germans from living in the capital city, including Fr. John Roth, the German-born priest of St. Mary's.[13]
See also
[edit]- Basilica of St. Mary (Alexandria, Virginia)
- List of cemeteries in the United States
- List of parishes in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Ward 5 Heritage Guide" (PDF). District of Columbia Office of Planning (dc.gov).
- ^ "Priest's Lot, St. Mary's German Catholic Cemetery - 328". DC Public Library.
- ^ "St. Mary's Cemetery". Saint Mary Mother of God (Washington, D.C.). n.d. Archived from the original on 2023-11-10. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
- ^ "Consecration of St. Mary's Cemetery". Evening star. March 26, 1870. p. 4. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
- ^ Boyd's Directory of Washington, Georgetown, and Alexandria. W.H. Boyd. 1871. p. xcvi.
- ^ "Historic Preservation Review Board Application for Historic Landmark or Historic District Designation: Glenwood Cemetery" (PDF). Government of the District of Columbia Historic Preservation Office. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-10-26. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
- ^ "Gone But Not Forgotten: Cemeteries in the Nation's Capital" (PDF). District of Columbia Office of Planning.
- ^ Proctor, John Clagett (June 7, 1931). "Early Washington Catholic Churches". Section 7: Sunday Star Magazine. Evening Star. No. 31813. Washington, D.C. p. 8. ISSN 2331-9968. Retrieved 2024-10-14. & "Early Catholic Churches (con't)". Evening Star. p. 9.
- ^ Boyd's Directory of Washington & Georgetown. Boyd's Directory Company. 1867. p. 66.
- ^ Meyer, Eugene L. (October 29, 1998). "History Chiseled in Stone". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
- ^ Litz, Anne Marie (November 24, 1901). "Mystery of Frenchy: Strange Character Known to Most Washingtonians". The Washington Post. No. 9297. p. 23. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
- ^ "German Civil War Veterans Attest Loyalty to Nation Whose Battles They Fought". Evening Star. No. 26699. Washington, D.C. May 30, 1917. p. 2. ISSN 2331-9968. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
- ^ Howard, Jerlynn Brezil (Winter 1984). "The Old Red Barn and Other Local Landmarks: A Brief History of GAO's Changing Neighborhood". The GAO Review. 19 (1). U.S. General Accounting Office: 26–29.
External links
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