Mountain Grove Cemetery, Bridgeport facts for kids
P. T. Barnum's gravestone at Mountain Grove
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| Details | |
|---|---|
| Established | 1849 |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| Type | Public |
Mountain Grove Cemetery is a special place in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It was created in 1849, designed like a beautiful park away from the busy city. This style was called a 'rural cemetery' and was very popular back then.
A famous showman named P. T. Barnum started this cemetery, and he is also buried here! Horatio Stone and Mr. John Moody, who was the cemetery's first manager, planned and designed the original grounds.
Famous People Buried Here
Many interesting people are buried at Mountain Grove Cemetery. Here are some of them:
- Neal Ball: A baseball player.
- P. T. Barnum: The famous showman and businessman who founded the cemetery.
- William D. Bishop: A politician.
- Fanny Crosby: A talented composer and poet who wrote many gospel hymns.
- Vernon Dalhart: A country singer and songwriter.
- Robert Lawson: An author and illustrator who won the Caldecott Medal and Newbery Medal for his books.
- John E. W. Thompson: An African-American minister who lived in Haiti. He also served as a special diplomat to San Domingo.
- General Tom Thumb: A very famous little person. His monument has a life-size statue of him on top of a tall stone pillar. His wife, Lavinia Warren, is also buried nearby.
- Kathleen Moore: She was a brave light keeper for the United States Lighthouse Service. She is known for saving 21 lives! A ship, the USCGC Kathleen Moore, was named after her.
Civil War Monument
The cemetery also has a special monument called Pro Patria, which means "For Our Country." This monument honors soldiers from the American Civil War.
The monument is a tall granite stone with a bronze plaque. It was put up in 1906 by a group of Civil War veterans from Bridgeport and the State of Connecticut. It is dedicated "IN LOVING MEMORY OF THOSE WHO DID NOT RETURN."
The monument was made by a sculptor named Paul Winters Morris. It shows figures of soldiers with their heads bowed. This monument stands in front of a plot marked by pyramids of cannonballs. About 83 Civil War veterans are buried in this area.
