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Elmwood Cemetery is a 50-acre municipal cemetery established in 1853. It is just across the street from Norfolk's first municipal cemetery, Cedar Grove and just beside Norfolk's first African American cemetery, West Point. A mid-nineteenth century grid design cemetery, Elmwood is filled with monuments and mausoleums that embody the pathos and symbolism of the Victorian era's romantic idea of death as temporary sleep. Within its boundaries are works of nationally known sculptures Edward Field Sanford, Jr. and William Couper as well as memorial architect Harold Van Buren Magonigle. An oasis in the middle of the modern city of Norfolk, this outdoor museum contains a wealth of Victorian funerary art. Elmwood Cemetery thrives today as a great source of genealogical information and as a biographical representation of the history of Norfolk, of its artists and craftsmen, soldiers, sailors, and ordinary citizens, from the wealthiest of merchants to the poorest of commoners buried in "strangers and paupers" lots. It is a visual representation of the evolution of American funerary art reflecting changing believes and tastes of successive generations.*
*Excerpt from the 2013 National Register of Historic Places nomination for Elmwood Cemetery

Notable Burials in Elmwood Cemetery

Visitor Information

Visitor Hours: Sunrise to Sunset

Office hours: Monday to Friday 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM

Free parking inside cemetery.

Admission Cost: Free

Address: 238 E. Princess Anne Road , Norfolk, VA 23510

Official web site for more information: www.norfolk.gov/cemeteries

Norfolk Society for Cemetery Conservation Web Site: www.norfolksocietyforcemeteryconservation.org