This past winter was a bit of a challenge for snow lovers. There just wasnit much of the fluffy white stuff to go around. My snowshoes sat lonely in my closet, and my sled only got used twice (and both times were before Christmas). I waited and waited for a beautiful snowy winteris day to take some pictures on a wander through one of my favorite local historical sites . . . Forest Lawn Cemetery. This enormous cemetery is beautiful any time of year and often leaves you forgetting youire in the middle of a city, but wandering through the twist, turns, hills, and valleys in winter is incomparable. Back in February we had a beautiful snow and so I spent 3-4 hours walking, exploring, and snapping pictures.
Thereis just something about the peaceful quiet, snow clinging to trees and monuments. The first burial at Forest Lawn was John Lay in 1850 and you can easily find many familiar local names on tombstones: Albright, Kleinhans, Baird, Granger, Fargo, and Letchworth, to name a few. And of course the 13th U.S. President, Millard Fillmore, is buried there. Enter through the main gate on the corner of Delaware and Delevan and near the entrance you can find maps locating some of the more ifamousi gravesites. If youire lucky, you might meet Ed D., the security guy, while heis driving around and heill direct you to some interesting sites or perhaps tell you a story or two. In his spare time, Ed has conducted historical research related to the lives of many of Forest Lawnis iresidentsi and independently compiled a wealth of fascinating information. Tales of murder-suicide, the story of a victim of the sinking of the Titanic whose gravesite is simply marked iLost at SeaiOe In the future, I hope to bring you some of the stories Ed has uncovered, but for now, well, itis primarily the artistry of cemetery monuments, statues, and tombstones that has long fascinated me. And thatis what these two slideshows are about.
(Thanks for your help Ed!)