Our Winter 2009 Program schedule is now available online. View the complete list of events and register for them today!

Would you like to combine your passion for books with your love of Mount Auburn Cemetery? You can by joining the Mount Auburn Book Club - now beginning a second year! Each month, we will read a different book, fiction as well as non-fiction, that speaks to one of Mount Auburn's many facets - history, horticulture, nature, or the lives of those commemorated here.

At 10:00 AM on Thursday, January 8th, we will discuss The Frozen-Water Trade by Gavin Weightman (2003). In the 19th-century Frederic Tudor harvested ice throughout New England to be shipped as far away as Calcutta, Bombay and Martinique. Tudor, known as Boston's "Ice King," is buried at Mount Auburn. Meet at Story Chapel, coffee and tea will be served. FREE.

"Conifer" comes from Latin and means "to bear cones." While most conifers do bear cones, a more common feature of coniferous plants is their needle-like or scale-like leaves. Because most conifers shed only some of their needles or scales in the fall, they are also known as evergreens.

The Pinus densiflora "Umbraculifera" pictured to the left above is located on Olive Avenue at the Cemetery and is number 78 on Mount Auburn's "Unusual Trees" map. Now more than 65 years old, the tree is also known as a Japanese Red Pine.

If you would like to learn more about this unusual tree or about other conifers at the Cemetery, please join Dennis Collins, Mount Auburn's Horticultural Curator, for "Conifers: Surviving Harsh Winters with Grace" a walking tour on Thursday, January 29th at 2:00 PM.

$5 per person for members of the Friends and $10 for non-members.

Learn more about Mount Auburn's horticultural collections.

"A Field Guide to Mount Auburn's Interesting Conifers," "Big Trees at Mount Auburn" and "Unusual Trees of Mount Auburn" materials are all available for purchase at the Entrance Gate to the Cemetery.

Cremation is an increasingly popular alternative to casket burial. Mount Auburn, which has the first crematory in New England to be operated by a cemetery, conducted its first cremation in 1900. We now perform over 900 cremations annually.

Join us for a free presentation about cremation at Bigelow Chapel on Saturday, January 17th, at 1:00 PM. Mount Auburn Crematory Manager Walter L. Morrison, Jr., will answer any questions that you may have about cremation procedures and costs. After the presentation at Bigelow Chapel, there will be an opportunity to tour the crematory.

Please register online for this and other programs at Mount Auburn.

Learn more about Mount Auburn's many burial and memorialization options.

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During this program we will highlight our recent work with before and after photographs and demonstrate the different materials and techniques used to preserve our structures. We look forward to sharing our recent accomplishments and continued efforts to care for our monuments and buildings with you! Space is limited; pre-registration is required.

$5 per person for members of the Friends and $10 for non-members.