This New York City Park Was Constructed On Top Of A Cemetery In 1897 To Provide More Green Spaces For Urbanites In Crowded Neighborhoods
You may be surprised to learn that the area that is now James J. Walker Park in New York City’s Greenwich Village used to be a cemetery.
In the late 19th century, the park was built on top of the burial ground as part of an initiative to provide more green spaces in the city’s crowded neighborhoods.
Near the northern entrance of the park, there is a white stone monument topped with a replica of a coffin adorned with firefighting tools.
The memorial is a sarcophagus for two young firemen who were killed in 1834 while they were doing their jobs. A large plaque is attached to the memorial’s east side, and it says:
“This ground was used as a cemetery by Trinity Parish during the years 1834-1898. It was made a public park by the City of New York in the year 1897. This monument stood in the cemetery and was removed to this spot in the year 1898.”
Before it was turned into a park, the cemetery was known as St. John’s Burying Ground. It served as the final resting place for about 10,000 individuals for almost a century.
It was associated with St. John’s Chapel of Trinity Parish. Although the plaque on the monument states that the cemetery was created in 1834, other sources suggest that it was in existence as early as 1799.
Trinity Church likely has the most accurate information since it has controlled several cemeteries in Manhattan throughout history.
“The first mention of St. John’s cemetery in our records is in December 1807,” said Kathryn Hurwitz, a church activist. “However, a plan for the layout of the cemetery was not approved until March 1812.”
TTstudio – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only – pictured above is a view of the New York City skyline
According to an article published in the New York Herald in 1891, St. John’s Burying Ground began “far out in the country.” The city quickly surrounded it as many of the wealthiest New York businessmen secured lots in the cemetery during the early 19th century.
The article also described how thousands of people were interred in unmarked graves around St. John’s Burying Ground during a cholera epidemic in 1832. The disease claimed the lives of more than 3,500 individuals in a city with a population of 250,000.
The Trinity Church archive and other historical records say that St. John’s Burying Ground contained members of important New York families with last names like Roosevelt, Lawrence, Mott, and Bayard. Famous performers of the day were also placed there, such as actress Naomi Vincent.
But overall, there were mostly just everyday New Yorkers at St. John’s Burying Ground. Many of the labels on the grave markers said stuff like “bookseller” or “wife of a merchant.”
In 1851, a New York City ordinance declared that full-body burials were prohibited in the cemetery unless the deceased was to be placed in a family crypt.
The last recorded burial at St. John’s Burying Ground was of the actor and playwright William E. Burton in 1860. By the 1880s, the cemetery and surrounding neighborhood fell into disrepair.
The city claimed the rights to St. John’s Burying Ground through the 1887 Small Parks Act. The act allowed the city to create parks. Trinity Parish fought hard to keep the cemetery under their jurisdiction.
The case was taken all the way to the New York Supreme Court. Many people were appalled by the city’s plans to bulldoze over the dead to build a park.
Ultimately, the church lost the fight. The city gained access to St. John’s Burying Ground in 1895 and started construction work over the graves in 1897.
Over the years, many modifications were made to the park to serve the needs of the community. It also underwent multiple name changes.
In 1945, it was renamed after James J. Walker, a controversial New York City mayor who was in office for two terms. He was known for legalizing Sunday baseball and professional football.
Shortly after he won his second term in 1929, an investigation was launched to determine if he accepted any bribes for municipal contracts.
He resigned in 1932 after formal charges of corruption were filed. Walker lived in the neighborhood near the park until his death in 1946.
Today, James J. Walker Park is full of cracked stones, broken bricks, and overgrown roots. Visitors must watch their steps when walking along the paths. Peeling paint and missing swings add to the park’s state of disarray.
Its future is uncertain, but locals make do with what they have, enjoying the park as much as they can.
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