A Son of the Hon. John D. Crimmins, New York City.
]
“This question ought to be fairly discussed before any final decision
is made on the location of the contemplated cemetery; and I hope the
columns of your widely circulated paper will be always open for the
discussion of this point of general interest.
“This affair, in the humble opinion of the writer, ought to be managed
by a separate board, composed of the Right Rev. Bishop of the diocese
and two members from each congregation, duly elected by the pewholders
of the several Catholic churches of this city, with power to select
the ground, the location, to make regulations, etc., etc. This
suggestion is made with the view of ascertaining the sense of the
Catholics of this city (who have very liberally contributed to the
support of their several churches and charitable institutions)
respecting this interesting question which agitates their minds.
“Very respectfully, your obt. serv’t,
“A SUBSCRIBER.
“And a Catholic resident of the city of New York.”
At the meeting of the trustees on March 6, 1833, every member present
pledged himself to use his utmost endeavor “in finding and prosecuting
the invaders of the vault out of town,” which seems to indicate that the
opposition to the up-town movement had taken a very radical turn.
Previous to this, however, the idea of locating the graveyard there was
abandoned, and on August 29, 1832, a committee of five trustees
appointed to provide “a good and convenient location for a new
graveyard,” paid $37,050 to Alderman Charles Henry Hall for the block
bounded by East Eleventh and Twelfth streets, First Avenue and Avenue A.
It is related that Mr. Hall soon after repented of his bargain and
offered to pay $50,000 if the block were deeded back to him. The offer
was refused, but 100 feet in depth on three sides of the plot was sold
to lighten the debt and the rest of the land, 413x206 feet, was devoted
to cemetery purposes. Permission for the first interment was given on
March 13, 1833, and from that date until the old Eleventh Street burial
ground was officially closed in August, 1848, the total number of
interments made in its limits was 41,016. As has been stated, the
interments in St. Patrick’s graveyard, from May 25, 1813, to March,
1833, were 32,153, so that in these two old downtown graveyards in
thirty-five years, a total of 73,169 Catholics were buried. These
figures are taken from Archbishop Corrigan’s paper on “The Catholic
Cemeteries of New York” and are therefore official. The Avenue A end of
the Eleventh Street plot was originally a hollow and had to be filled in
about eighteen feet above the level at the time of its purchase.
There was a wooden fence around the property at first and this was
replaced by the iron railing that now encloses it. The high brick wall
around St. Patrick’s was put up just before the anti-Catholic excitement
of 1836 and served as a protection to the old church that largely
helped, when manned by stout defenders, to awe the mob that assembled to
plunder and destroy it. In the same year, June 5, 1836, it was
determined to rebuild St. Peter’s Church in Barclay Street. The graves
in the little space about the church were opened and most of the remains
reinterred in St. Patrick’s graveyard. Some of the pioneers were left
undisturbed and still repose under the walls of the new church built
over the old site.
The dead who sleep about the walls of old St. Patrick’s made up the very
flower of the pioneer families, mainly Irish, who built up the church in
New York. Among the long list are the first pastors and their
assistants, Fathers Michael O’Gorman, Richard Bulger, Charles Brennan
and Peter Malou—who was a general in the Belgium army and then a Jesuit.
One of his sons became a bishop in his native land—Fathers Luke Berry,
of St. Mary’s; Gregory B. Pardow, an uncle of the Jesuit of our day;
James Neale, Carberry J. Byrne, Thomas C. Levins, John N. Smith of St.
James’ and Dr. John Power, V. G. The remains of the bishops of the See,
except the first, were transferred from old St. Patrick’s to the crypt
of the Fifth Avenue Cathedral after it was opened.
The parents of Cardinal McCloskey were buried in old St. Patrick’s and
so were a son of the famous French general, Moreau, Capt. Pierre
Laudais, of the navy, who fought with Paul Jones in the Revolution;
Thomas, the father of the great lawyer, Charles O’Conor; Thomas S.
Brady, father of James T. and Judge John R. Brady; Capt. James McKeon,
of the army in 1812 and father of John McKeon; Andrew Morris, Stephen
Jumel, Dominick Lynch and his numerous children; John B. Lasala, the
Denmans, the Hargous, Binsse, Coughlan, Brandegee, De Londe, Shea,
O’Brien and other prominent old New York families.
In the Eleventh Street graveyard the 41,016 dead are of a later period,
but include many names of special local interest on the old stones, such
as the Murphy, Lynch, Carroll, Hanly, Sweeney, Bradley, Davey, McMahon,
Holahan, and other families. A local character, who died September 26,
1838, and was buried here, was an Italian named Joseph Bonfanti, who
kept what might be called the first “department store” in New York. It
was located at 297 Broadway, and it was his boast that no one could go
into his store and ask for anything in fancy articles he could not
produce for sale. He advertised in rhymes and some of the efforts in
this direction are wonderful productions. Local fame had it that he kept
poets on salary to supply his needs in this direction. His tombstone
told that he was born in Monticello, December 9, 1798, was “universally
esteemed as an affectionate husband, a kind father and a sincere
friend,” and that,—
“Cheerful he journeyed through life’s chequered wild,
Honest, sincere, benevolent, mild.
As husband, father, friend, fulfilled his part,
Affection’s smile the sunshine of his heart.”
Capt. John McMahon had a monument erected to him by the Montgomery
Guards, of whom he was commander. He was a native of Limerick, Ireland,
and died aged 37 years on April 17, 1849.
Another epitaph was as follows:
“This tomb was erected by Rosanna, widow of John Connolly, Jr.,
carpenter, of Gargin, parish of Killaly, County of Galway, Ireland, in
memory of the most affectionate of husbands, who died in New York on
the 6th day of March, 1841, aged —— years; as also her daughter Mary,
who died on the 10th of August, 18—, aged —— months, as also her son,
Michael, who died on the 1st of August, 1840, aged —— months.
“This stone has been sent her by her father-in-law as a token of
respect for her and love for his son John, her husband. May their
souls rest in peace.
“Dated Galway, Ireland, 1846. This stone has been sent her by her
father-in-law, Michael Connolly.”
The stone to the memory of James, son of Denis and Winifred Hanley, who
died November 28, 1839, gave this advice:
“Weep not for me, my parents dear,
I am not dead but sleepeth here.
As I am now so you will be;
Prepare for death and follow me.”
On October 29, 1845, the Alsop farm of about 115 acres in Newtown, Long
Island, was purchased for a new place of burial, and at a special
meeting of the trustees of St. Patrick’s on July 31, 1848, it was
ordered that “the cemetery at Newtown Creek, recently consecrated in
part should be called Calvary, and placed at the disposal of the public;
that after August 2 the Eleventh Street burial ground as well as the
free vault at Fiftieth Street, should be permanently closed.” Calvary
Cemetery began to be used August 4, 1848, when the first interment, that
of Esther Ennis, was made. Subsequent purchases of land made the
territory consecrated to the burial of the dead more than 300 acres.
From August, 1848, to January, 1898, there were 644,761 interments
there.
From January, 1898, to the present, there have been about 200,000
interments, thus making in round numbers 850,000 interments in all so
far at Calvary Cemetery.