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All the United States New York State New York City Kings Park St. Johnland Cemetery

St. Johnland Cemetery

This forgotten graveyard in rural New York State once served a pioneering hospital.

Kings Park, New York

Added By
kate truisi
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An unmarked cross grave.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Trees grow between the scattered graves.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
The simple wooden sign of the St. Johnland Cemetery.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Grave of James Bealin.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Grave of John C. Cunningham and wife Arabella C. Medina.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
The cemetery sign states each individual buried in the plot.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Moss grows at the base of a grave.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Grave of Earl Metcalf.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Grave of Anna M. Wenrheim.   katetruisi / Atlas Obscura User
Partial list of names   alwaysardent / Atlas Obscura User
St Johnland Cemetery   alwaysardent / Atlas Obscura User
  pines235 / Atlas Obscura User
  pines235 / Atlas Obscura User
  pines235 / Atlas Obscura User
Partial list of names   alwaysardent / Atlas Obscura User
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About

The seemingly forgotten St. Johnland Cemetery is positioned between the Sunken Meadow State Park hiking trails and the St. Johnland Hospital grounds in Kings Park, New York.

St. Johnland Hospital, today a thriving care home, was founded by famed Episcopal social worker William Augustus Muhlenberg. Prior to St. Johnland Muhlenberg had already opened the Church of the Holy Communion and St. Luke’s Hospital in New York City.

Muhlenberg was helped in this endeavor by Anne Ayres, a former teacher who had become an Episcopalian nun after hearing Muhlenberg speak. Together they helped create a woodland retreat and refuge for those who had been beaten down by hard knocks and city living. This small cemetery served the community, which grew steadily over the years. Muhlenberg was buried in the graveyard in 1877, and Ayres followed in 1896.

Tucked away in the woods, the cemetery can only be accessed by hopping a fence on the north side of the trail or wandering into the woods behind the St. Johnland Hospital. There is no direct trail from either side, making it barely visible and therefore seldom visited. There is seemingly no upkeep of the grounds, which has left the graves to the fate of the woods surrounding them. Some graves have been swallowed by overgrown vines, others are inaccessible due to fallen trees.

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The best time to visit is in the winter as there is less obstruction from the brush and trees.

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Added By

katetruisi

Edited By

alwaysardent, pines235

  • alwaysardent
  • pines235

Published

March 9, 2016

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  • http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cr&CRid=2327293
  • http://www.stjohnland.org/about-us/history/
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Ayres
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Augustus_Muhlenberg
St. Johnland Cemetery
395 Sunken Meadow Rd
Kings Park, New York, 11754
United States
40.904675, -73.240267
Get Directions

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Photo of Kings Park

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