First Animal Burial Ground Listed in the National Register of Historic Places

News Release

Contact: Edward Martin, Jr., Director  

914-949-2583

info@petcem.com 

                                                                    
Mary Thurston, Historian

512-328-9079

mary@petcem.com

Hartsdale Pet Cemetery Becomes First Animal Burial Ground

Listed in the National Register of Historic Places

Celebration Set for Sunday, October 6 at Cemetery

HARTSDALE, NY October 6, 2012 -- In recognition of the social history and landscape architecture of Hartsdale Pet Cemetery, the National Park
Service has listed America's oldest continuously operated animal burial
ground in its National Register of Historic Places.

Hartsdale Pet Cemetery and Westchester County government officials will celebrate the designation by unveiling the National Registry plaque on Saturday, October 6, 2012 at 1 p.m. near the main gate at 75 North Central Avenue in Hartsdale, New York. 

The event, which is open to the public, will also recognize the cemetery's new listing on the New York State Register of Historic Places.

Also known as the “Peaceable Kingdom,” Hartsdale is the first pet cemetery to be listed in the National Register.  Of the 88,000 listed properties, only 2,698 are cemeteries.

The Register is administered by the National Park Service under the United States Department of the Interior.

"The special relationship between Americans and their pets dates to the earliest settlements in the country," said Carol Shull, Interim Keeper of the National Register.  "The addition of Hartsdale Pet Cemetery to the Register is a fitting way to recognize the long-standing and significant role animal companions have played in our nation's history and culture."

Commenting on the designation, Hartsdale Director Edward Martin, Jr. said, "This is the most important event in the cemetery's 115 years of continual operation.  I am pleased that Hartsdale Pet Cemetery will now be counted among America's
most treasured historical places, ensuring that it is protected and able to
serve future generations.”

"The story of Hartsdale is about the lives of pets and the people who loved them, people from every station in life.  Those who choose to bury their pets do so because they want to, not because they have to.  They do not care more about animals than humans. They simply are caring people who think this is the right thing to do."

Speaking on behalf of the International Association of Pet Cemeteries and Crematories, President Debra Bjorling said, “Hartsdale has long been recognized as a role model for pet cemeteries worldwide.  Its rich history is of great importance to our society and to those who understand and value the role animals play in our daily lives.  We are very proud that the significance of
this beautiful cemetery is being recognized.”

The national designation recognizes Hartsdale's outstanding landscape design and collection of monuments and works of art.

Its five-acre hillside still retains much of its 19th-century pastoral
flavor, characterized by scenic vistas with mature maples, walnut and hickory
trees. 

The carefully tended grounds are resplendent in color from blooming azaleas, cherry and crabapple trees, attracting a variety indigenous birds and making it a community treasure.

Since 1896, Hartsdale Pet Cemetery has been the final resting place for pets of every description, including all manner of dogs and cats as well as a number of more exotic pets, including a lion who lived at the Plaza Hotel. 

The plot-holders have included some of America’s most prominent
financial and political figures, musicians, artists, and celebrities of stage,
screen, and television.  In 1986, pet cremation services were made
available at the cemetery to address the growing demand for a dignified
alternative to traditional burial, and today animal hospitals and veterinarians
throughout the Tri-State area refer their clients to Hartsdale for final services.

What started as the quiet summer retreat of a prominent Manhattan veterinarian with a compassionate heart made it a prime location for the final resting place of
thousands of beloved family pets. Pioneering animal welfare proponents applauded the creation of the cemetery as a critical social platform for the expression of a growing kinship with nonhuman beings.  In the century to
follow, over 70,000 interments would take place in the former apple orchard.

 Some of the more unique treasures at Hartsdale include a fifty
ton above-ground mausoleum, the first and largest of its kind, and the famous
War Dog Memorial, which was dedicated after World War I and is the first public
tribute to honor military working dogs for their bravery and sacrifice.  Other monuments equally notable for the representational animal art and heartfelt inscriptions which grace them are to be found throughout the grounds.

Hartsdale Pet Cemetery hosts annual public events including pet adoptions, a
Blessing of the Animals ceremony, historical walking tours, national Pet
Memorial Day, a War Dog Memorial ceremony and a holiday tree lighting ceremony that includes a food donation to the local animal shelters and pet rescue groups. 

Hartsdale Pet Cemetery is open 364 days a
year, from 8:30 am to 4:30
pm. 

It is only thirty minutes north of mid-town Manhattan and is easily
accessible via the Metro North Railroad Harlem Line and automobile.

For more information, visit: http://www.petcem.com/