All Faiths Cemetery


The All Faiths Cemetery is located in Middle Village, Queens, New York. The 225-acre cemetery was established in 1850 by Lutheran pastor Frederick W. Geissenhainer, and incorporated in 1852. It is also known as the Lutheran Cemetery or Lutheran All Faiths Cemetery. Approximately 540,000 burials have been conducted at All Faiths since its founding.

History

In 1847 the New York state legislature passed the Rural Cemetery Act, which allowed non-profit organizations to incorporate and sell burial plots. Seeing an opportunity to provide a lower-cost alternative to existing cemeteries such as Green-wood in Brooklyn, the Rev. Dr. Frederick W. Geissenhainer, the pastor of St. Paul's German Lutheran Church, conferred with representatives of St. Matthew's Lutheran Church While St. Paul's decided against investing in this endeavor, St. Matthew's and Dr. Geissenhainer pursued the purchase of land in Queens in 1850. The parcels owned by St. Matthews and Dr. Geissenhainer were held and developed separately; he incorporated as the "Lutheran Cemetery" on March 22, 1852. Additional acreage was purchased over the next few years, and the Lutheran Cemetery bought the St. Matthew's land in 1868. Burials at the Lutheran Cemetery started at $2.50, and plots could be obtained for $7.00.

Notable burials and memorials