National Memorial Park
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National Memorial Park is a cemetery located in the Washington, D.C suburb of Falls Church, Virginia. The cemetery is part of the National Funeral Home and National Memorial Park complex, which includes several related memorial and end-of-life services. The cemetery covers 168 acres, lined with fountains, trees, gardens, and sculptures.
History
In 1933, local businessman Robert Marlowe purchased a Falls Church dairy farm. Over the years, the property and businesses expanded to include funeral, bereavement, cremation and burial services, as well as a pet cemetery. The funeral home, cemetery and related services are available to people of all faiths, cultures and backgrounds.
Services
The site specializes in designing funeral services that commemorate the unique lives of the individuals being honored. Examples include memorials that incorporate a decedent’s favorite song, pastime, family, job, or other individual eccentricity. The site partners with veterans service organizations to offer specialized services to veterans and their families. The site also offers an on-site crematory.
Landscape
Memorial park covers 168 acres, including ponds, sculptures, greenery, and various floral arrangements. Designed as a walkable area, the cemetery contains walking paths and trees to provide shade and cover. The cemetery offers various options for internment, including ground burial sites, a mausoleum, cremation niches and benches, and private and semiprivate estates.
Features
A prominent feature of the cemetery is the Living Cross, a 1,000-foot garden that includes the Fountain of Faith, designed by Swedish sculptor Carl Milles.[1] The site also includes white marble sculptures of Christ’s Last Supper, as well as a genizah located in its King David Memorial Gardens.
The cemetery has several areas commemorating national events and tragedies, such as the attacks of September 11, 2001. Most prominent among these is the Four Chaplains Memorial, a sculpture representing a flying white bird. Created by abstract artist Constantino Nivol, the memorial honors the 4 United States Army chaplains who gave their lives to save civilian and military personnel when the World War II-era SS Dorchester sank on February 3, 1943.
The grounds also include several sculptures related to the Christian and Buddhist religions.
Pet Cemetery
The complex includes Noah's Ark Pet Cemetery, housing graves for dogs, cats, horses and other animals.
Carl Milles works
Carl Milles’s Fountain of Faith includes sculpted bronze figures depicting men, women and children in the afterlife. The Fountain has been considered the culmination of the Swedish sculptor’s distinguished career.[2] The 1952 dedication event attracted an estimated 24,000 attendees.[3] The Fountain has been covered in national publications such as Time magazine[4] and the Washington Post, which noted that during his time on the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Warren Burger wrote to Arlington, Virginia officials to ask that their police become more familiar with the Fountain of Faith so that they might give citizens better directions to visit it.[5]
Milles also created 3 15-foot statues deemed “The Sun Singer.” One is in Stockholm, 1 is in Monticello, Illinois, and 1 is in National Memorial Park. The statue depicts the Greek god Apollo and his winged horse Pegasus.[6]
Annual events
The annual Ching Ming Festival (or Qingming Festival) happens during the 1st week of April. This festival provides attendees the opportunity to honor their ancestors by praying, sweeping tombs and making various offerings.
Hundreds of guests also attend the High Holy Days event, where local rabbis conduct a service on the grounds. The annual event includes refreshments, choral singers and prayer books.
Abbey Mausoleum reinterments
In January 2001, approximately 174 bodies were transferred to National Memorial Park cemetery from the nearby Abbey Mausoleum, which was being closed and demolished following years of disrepair and vandalism.[7]
Notable burials
- Philip Pitt Campbell (1862-1941), U.S. Congressman from Kansas, 1903 to 1924.
- Charles Forrest Curry[8] (1858-1930), U.S. Congressman from California, 1913 to 1930.
- Blossom Dearie[9] (1924-2009), American jazz singer and dancer.
- Frances Foster
- Frank Howard (baseball)[10] (1936-2023), All-Star outfielder, coach and manager in Major League Baseball
- Clay Kirby
- Pietro Lazzari
- Oscar Raymond Luhring[11] (1879-1944), U.S. Congressman from Indiana, 1919-1923, U.S. Circuit Court judge, 1930-1944.
- Wayne Vernal Millner
- Lyn Nofziger
- Jim Ricca (1927-2007), American professional football player in the 1950s.
- Kyle Rote
- Harry Richard Sheppard[12] (1885-1869), U.S. Congressman from California, 1937 to 1965.
- Paul Allman Siplele
- Vinnie Taylor
- ^ James M. Goode (2008). Washington Sculpture: A Cultural History of Outdoor Sculpture in the Nation's Capital. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
- ^ Ann O'Hanlon (September 28, 2000). "A Sculpture Garden's Rebirth". Washington Post.
- ^ "The Fountain of Faith". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
- ^ "Art: Heaven on Earth". Time magazine. October 20, 1952.
- ^ Ann O'Hanlon (September 28, 2000). "A Sculpture Garden's Rebirth". Washington Post.
- ^ "Works of Carl Milles". The New York Times. March 13, 1988.
- ^ Frederick Kunkle (January 27, 2001). "Virginia crypt giving up its ghosts". []Washington Post]].
- ^ "Biography of Charles Forrest Curry". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- ^ "Blossom Dearie gravesite". Find a Grave.
- ^ "Frank Howard gravesite". Find a Grave.
- ^ "Oscar Raymond Luhring biography". U.S. Congress Biographical Directory.
- ^ "Henry Richard Sheppard biography". U.S. Biological Directory.