Milton Cemetery - Milton, MA - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

In Milton, along Centre Street, is the Milton Cemetery.

The cemetery has several access points. The Side (west) entrance, next to the superintendent's office, is about 100 ft east of the intersection of Centre Street and Randolph Avenue.

The cemetery is a rambling property with the old burial ground at the northwest end, a newer cemetery south and east, and the modern cemetery to the north east. There are several entrances into the cemetery, but only two that I know are usually opened: the side entrance and the main entrance, both off Centre Street. Paved roads allow you to travel by car to most locations within the cemetery. On the west side is a pond. A little east of the burial ground is a veterans memorial cemetery, where veterans of the military who are residents of Miton can be buried. Southeast of here is a memorial to policemen and another for firemen. The grounds buildings are a little further east.

The nomination form is very extensive - only small bits are included here.

From the cemetery web site:

"Established ten years after the incorporation of the Town in 1672, the cemetery is home to over 30,000 permanent residents. The site is comprised of 104 contiguous acres and characterized by curvilinear avenues and paths set in a rolling terrain of mature trees, shrubs and gardens. Gravestones range from the hand carved slate monuments of the late 1600's to the modern monuments of the present."

From the nomination form:

"The irregular shape of the 101.6-acre burial ground with approximately 9000 gravestones is reflective of its development over a 330-year period, beginning in 1672. The burial ground is composed of 3 distinct parts: the Old Burial Ground (1672-1854), laid out on a linear pattern established in colonial times; the New Cemetery (1854-1945), designed according to the aesthetic principles of the "rural" cemetery movement; and the Modern Cemetery (1945-present). A portion of this latter part, the Ladd Section, is considered noncontributory because it was added to the cemetery in 1962. There are three entrances to the cemetery: Centre Street-Centennial Avenue, the main entrance; Centre Street-Willow Avenue; and Gun Hill Road-Centennial Avenue. The Queen Anne superintendent's house/office (1889) and stable (1889) is located on a .53-acre parcel of land adjoining the burial grounds at the Willow Avenue entrance."

. . .

"The Old Burial Ground: 1672-1854
The Old Burial Ground (MAP #s1A-E; MHC #800; Photograph #s1, 2) is a 3-acre rectangular tract of gentle undulating land located at the front (northern) end of the cemetery facing Centre Street. . .The ca. 600 gravestones, which are in poor to good condition, document the evolution of the design and material of this type of marker from the 1687 Christopher Wadsworth stone, the earliest headstone in the cemetery, to the mid-19th century. The 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries slate gravestones of the Reedman, Foye, and How/Vose Sections display an evolving iconography from the earliest grim death heads through the enlightened winged cherubs and portraits to the willow and urn that continued to the mid-19th century. Of note are the slate stones designed by four known carvers. . . "

. . .

"The New Cemetery (1854-1945)
In contrast to the linear pattern of the Old Burial Ground is the New Cemetery (MAP #s1F-1J; MHC #800; Photographs #3,4) whose gracefully winding avenues and paths were laid out according to the design principles of the mid-19th century "rural" cemetery movement, which advocated incorporating burial grounds within a pastoral and naturalistic landscape. This section, which lies to the south (rear),
east and west of the Old Burial Ground is composed of five sections. . . The New Cemetery is characterized by rolling terrain, extending from Centre Street along an undulating plain and then descending to a valley in the middle and rising again to the rear (southern) hill and once again descending to a valley at the rear boundary. Unquity Brook once flowed through the middle valley. Today it continues to feed the duck pond (MAP #2; MHC #955; Photograph #5), an irregularly shaped body of water created in 1883 in the Second Armory Section. The pond, bordered by willow trees and benches, offers a place for quiet contemplation in a bucolic setting. . . The 1920 Soldiers' Lot (MAP #3; MHC #956; Photograph #12) fronts on Soldiers Avenue in the 1897 Peabody Section. An uncut stone memorial with a bronze tablet dedicates the area to men and women from Milton, who have served in the armed services. Approximately 60 simple white marble gravestones are aligned in rows and date from 1894 to the present. A flagpole towers over the plot. . . "
. . .

"The superintendent's house and office (MAP #4; MHC #70; Photograph #6) and stable (MAP #5; MHC #716; Photograph #13) were constructed in 1889 on a parcel of land adjoining the Centre Street-Willow Avenue entrance across from the Old Burial Ground. The 2½ -story Queen Anne residence is composed of the 3-bay, hip roof main block and a side gable wing. Wood clapboards sheath the first floor with wood shingle in a staggered design on the second floor. Queen Anne details include half-timbering in the gables and dormer, a bracketed cutaway bay window and the front porch with turned balusters. In 1921 a one-story section with a fireproof vault was added to the eastern elevation to serve as an office. . ."

The Modern Cemetery: 1945 - 1952
The Modern Cemetery (MAP #s1K, A; MHC #800; Photograph #s11,20) lies to the east of the New Cemetery to which it is linked by Locust and Maple Avenues. The 1945 Ladd-Brooks Section consists of two parts connected by a dirt path. The Brooks part, a wooded lot bordered on the north by Brook Road, was the rear section of the J. Henry Brooks Estate and has not been developed for burial purposes. Still visible are the foundation stones of the coachman's cottage for the Brooks Estate that was demolished in 1953. . . "

Street address: 211 Centre Street Milton, MA United States of America 02186 County / Borough / Parish: Norfolk Year listed: 2004 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering Periods of significance: 1950-1974, 1925-1949, 1900-1924, 1875-1899, 1850-1874, 1825-1849, 1800-1824, 1750-1799, 1700-1749, 1650-1699 Historic function: Funerary Current function: Funerary Privately owned?: no Season start / Season finish: From: 01/01/2017 To: 12/31/2017 Hours of operation: From: 8:00 AM To: 5:00 PM Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Secondary Website 2: [Web Link] National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

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