The story of one of the Boston area’s most famous attractions, the Mount Auburn Cemetery, and how its founders and “residents” have influenced American culture
When the Mount Auburn Cemetery was founded in 1831, it revolutionized the way Americans mourned the dead by offering a peaceful space for contemplation. This cemetery, located not far from
Harvard University, was also a place that reflected and instilled an imperative to preserve and protect nature in a rapidly industrializing culture—lessons that would influence Central Park,
the cemetery at Gettysburg, and the creation of the National Parks system. Even today this urban wildlife habitat and nationally recognized hotspot for migratory songbirds continues to connect
visitors with nature and serves as a model for sustainable landscape practices. Beyond Mount Auburn’s prescient focus on conservation, it also reflects the impact of transcendentalism and the
progressive spirit in American life seen in advances in science, art, religion and in social reform movements.
In The Lively Place, Stephen Kendrick celebrates this vital piece of our nation’s history, as he tells the story of Mt. Auburn’s founding, its legacy, and the many influential Americans
interred there, from religious leaders to abolitionists, poets, and reformers.
