Sweet Auburn: The Magazine of the Friends of Mount Auburn Reimagining the Cemetery as Museum | Page 21

Project Updates People and Happenings Last summer and fall, Mount Auburn made significant progress on several exciting projects, including: August 2015 August 2015 Egyptian Revival Gateway Restoration As part of the first phase of a multi-year project to restore our Egyptian Revival Gateway, our historic iron fence and gates along Mount Auburn Street were removed beginning in August. After restoration in the workshop of the Cassidy Brothers Forge is completed, the fence will be reinstalled in early 2016.This project is being supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Facilities Fund, a City of Cambridge Historical Commission Community Preservation Act grant, Cambridge Savings Bank, the Harold Whitworth Pierce Fund, and several individual gifts. October 2015 September 2015 Willow Pond Rain Garden A new rain garden was completed last fall at the northern end of Willow Pond. Under the direction of New England Environmental, Inc. a new rock weir was constructed to slow the discharge of storm water into the pond during large rain events. New plants were selected for their water purifying qualities as well as their value as habitat for wildlife. November 2015 May 2015 Spruce Knoll Expansion A project to expand Mount Auburn’s cremation garden, Spruce Knoll, started last spring. Julie Moir Messervey, who designed the original garden 20 years ago, worked with Mount Auburn on the expansion to ensure that qualities of the original space carried forward into the newly designed section. Sale of burial space in the new section of Spruce Knoll began in the summer of 2015. 2016 Volume 1 | 19