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Dear Friend,
The Friends of Mount Auburn is pleased to present the May 2008 edition of our electronic newsletter. We invite you to join our email list to receive this mailing on a monthly basis. If you haven't done so already, click the link above to verify your interest in receiving our newsletter. To ensure that you continue to receive emails from us, add friends@mountauburn.org to your address book today.
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 Visitors Center Grand Opening
Visitors have been coming to Mount Auburn Cemetery since 1831. We now invite you to help us celebrate the Grand Opening of our new Visitors Center at Story Chapel: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM on Saturday, May 3rd & Sunday, May 4th.
Join us to explore the new exhibits, see the introductory video and enjoy free family-friendly activities, tours and special events throughout the weekend.
View the schedule of events for Saturday, May 3rd and Sunday, May 4th on our website. A pre-recorded telephone announcement is also available on our special programs line: 617-607-1995.
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Horticultural Highlight Native to central China, the Davidia involucrata or Dove Tree is a medium-sized deciduous tree discovered by and named in honor of 19th-century French missionary Père Armand David (1826-1900) in 1869.
The only member of its genus, it is a moderately fast-growing tree, best known for its flowers - petite pom-pon like blooms surrounded by showy white bracts up to 6 inches long which resemble fluttering doves or handkerchiefs blowing the breezes of mid-to-late May.
With bright green heart-shaped leaves, cinnamon-orange scaly bark and ornamental fruit that turns a rust color in the autumn, this spectacular specimen is # 34 on Mount Auburn's Most Unusual Tree Map, and warrants a visit this spring!
Learn more about Mount Auburn's horticultural collections. |
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 "The American Resting Place"
Please join us at the Boston Public Library on Thursday, May 15th at 6:00 PM for a lecture with Marilyn Yalom, who will discuss her book, The American Resting Place: 400 Years of History Through Our Cemeteries and Burial Grounds.
Stunningly illustrated with eighty black-and-white photographs by Reid S. Yalom, The American Resting Place is a sweeping history of America as seen through its gravestones, graveyards and burial practices.
During the illustrated lecture, Yalom will offer a unique glimpse into our religious, ethnic and deeply human history by sharing examples of burial grounds, cemeteries and funeral customs from different regions of the country over the past 400 years.
This program is free to the public and will begin promptly at 6:00 PM in the Rabb Auditorium of the Boston Public Library in Copley Square. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.
Visit our website to learn more and register for this event.
Co-sponsored by the Boston Athenaeum, Historic New England, Massachusetts Historical Society and New England Historic Genealogical Society. |
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 Spring Programs
View the complete list of Spring 2008 Friends programs and register for them online at www.mountauburn.org today!
Early-Riser's Horticultural Club. Join Horticultural Curator Dennis Collins for these brisk morning walks. Fridays, May 2nd, May 16th & May 30th at 7:00 AM. FREE.
Mount Auburn Book Club. On Thursday, May 8th we will discuss naturalist Scott Weidensaul's Of A Feather: A Brief History of American Birding (2007, Harcourt). Each May, Mount Auburn provides temporary shelter for thousands of spring migrant birds. Meet at Story Chapel at 10:00 AM. FREE.
"Memories of Mothers" - a Mother's Day walking tour. Please join us on Sunday, May 11th at 2:00 PM for a tour to explore the symbols of motherhood on monuments throughout the Cemetery. We will visit the graves of some of the notable mothers buried here - including Julia Ward Howe, founder of Mother's Day for Peace. $5 for members of the Friends, $10 for non-members.
Monument Inscription Workshop. Join us on Thursday, May 22nd at 2:00 PM to learn techniques for assessing the condition of older monuments and recording valuable inscriptions that are fading away with time! Meet near the Entrance Gate. FREE.
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 Service of Commemoration
Mount Auburn cordially invites you to remember the lives of friends and loved ones at our annual Service of Commemoration on Saturday, May 24th at 1:30 PM.
Religious and community representatives will lead the ceremony, which will be held on the lawn in front of Bigelow Chapel.
This free event is offered every year to set aside time to celebrate the lives of those who have gone before us and to experience the uniqueness of Mount Auburn as a memorial of beauty and peace.
If special assistance is needed, transportation from the Entrance Gate to Bigelow Chapel and seating can be provided. For more information, visit www.mountauburn.org or call 617-547-7105. In the event of rain, the service will be held indoors. |
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 Mount Auburn Cemetery: Birch Gardens
Birch Gardens, Mount Auburn's newest burial area, will be opening later this year. The month of May will continue to be construction season.
Irrigation lines will be installed and 50 trees will be planted including serviceberry (Amelachier laevis) and Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia) cultivars.
Hundreds of shrubs will be installed, all creating nine unique outdoor "rooms" for celebrating a life or mourning a death. The photograph depicts a mock-up of an area at the base of the granite structure where visitors may place floral tributes.
Mount Auburn is still a unique choice for burial and commemoration. We offer a variety of innovative interment and memorialization options for all. Learn more about Mount Auburn's many burial and memorialization options.
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You can now join or renew your membership in the Friends of Mount Auburn quickly, securely and easily online! The Friends of Mount Auburn Cemetery was established in 1986 as a non-profit educational trust to promote the appreciation and preservation of Mount Auburn. Join the Friends of Mount Auburn. Learn about volunteer opportunities at Mount Auburn.
Friends of Mount Auburn Cemetery
phone: 617-547-7105
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