Joseph Story:
“ A rural Cemetery seems to gratify human feelings, or tranquilize human fears; to secure the best religious influences, and to cherish all those associations which cast a cheerful light over the darkness of the grave. And what spot can be more appropriate than this, for such a purpose? Nature seems to point it out with significant energy, as the favorite retirement for the dead. There are around us all the varied features of her beauty and grandeur— the forest-crowned height; the abrupt acclivity; the sheltered valley; the deep glen; the grassy glade; and the silent grove. Here are the lofty oak, the beech, the rustling pine, and the drooping willow;— the tree, that sheds its pale leaves every autumn, a fit emblem of our own transitory bloom; and the evergreen, with its perennial shoots. Here is the thick shrubbery to protect and conceal the new-made grave; and there is the wild-flower creeping along the narrow path, and planting its seeds in the upturned earth. All around us there breathes a solemn calm, as if we were in the bosom of a wilderness, broken only by the breeze as it murmurs through the tops of the forest, or by the notes of the warbler pouring forth his evening song.
… And we are met here to consecrate this spot, by these solemn ceremonies, to such a purpose: as a Rural Cemetery or Burying-Ground, and to plant and embellish it with shrubbery, and flowers, and trees, and walks, and other rural ornaments. And I stand here by the order and in behalf of this Society, to declare that, by these services, it is to be deemed henceforth and forever so dedicated. Mount Auburn, in the noblest sense, belongs no longer to the living, but to the dead. It is a sacred, it is an eternal trust. It is consecrated ground. May it remain forever inviolate!”
Photo by Joseph Martinez
David Barnett: As I hear Joseph Story’ s words from 180 years ago describing this very spot in which we stand, I am struck by how similar it appears today. So much of what he mentions— from the forest-crowned height and the sheltered valley to the oak and the rustling pine to the thick shrubbery and the wildflower creeping along the narrow path— are still very much here today. And although we haven’ t heard“ the warbler pouring forth his evening song” today, it sure has been fun to see and hear the two young Great Horned Owls that were born here in the Dell this spring.
It is gratifying to observe the success of the work we have done over the last several years to restore this area to the natural woodland setting that was here in 1831. We have dramatically improved the habitat value for migrating warblers and other birds each spring and fall, as well as for many nesting species such as the Great Horned Owls whose babies you’ ve just been observing. The new plantings and other work around the vernal pool have also improved the habitat for an ecologically significant population of Yellow-spotted Salamander, only just recently removed from the“ Special Concern” species list in Massachusetts. We have been fortunate to receive significant funding from the Ruggiero Memorial Trust, along with a number of other donors, to assist us in these efforts to restore the woodland habitat. As part of this multiyear phased project, we have removed the exotic invasive species such as Norway Maple and Japanese Barberry, along with other non-native species such as Japanese Yew, and replaced them with several thousand plants representing over 100 species of trees, shrubs, groundcovers, and wildflowers that are native to New England.
Photo by John Harrison
And while the Dell has been restored as closely as possible to its natural state, throughout the rest of the grounds we continue to“ plant and embellish with shrubbery, and flowers, and trees, and walks, and other rural ornaments” in the words of Joseph Story. Several areas, including the garden in front of Bigelow Chapel, have recently been planted in the Victorian-inspired, highly ornate garden style. Other areas have been planted to enhance various historic landscape character zones representing different periods of Mount Auburn’ s 180-year evolution. In all our planning, horticultural diversity and overall landscape beauty are paramount, just as our founders envisioned.
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