HISTORIC
ELY CEMETERY
|
ANNUAL
OPENINGS
Memorial Day and Veteran's Day
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm |
The
Livingston Historical Society will open the historic Ely Cemetery
to the public on Monday, May 30, 2011 from 2 pm – 4 pm.
Located on Hillside Avenue, it is the private burial ground of
generations of Elys and other prominent local families with whom
they intermarried.
The
Cemetery was established by Captain William Ely, a veteran of
the Colonial Wars, around 1777, on a ¼ acre of his fields.
His daughter Elizabeth Ely Jones, her second husband Frederick
Jones and their infant son Bennoni were the burial ground's first
interments. All three died within two weeks of each other.
The
original plot was enlarged in 1864 by Ambrose Ely who surrounded
it by a native stone wall, constructed of material quarried on
Riker Hill which was part of the Ely property.
The cemetery contains several large monuments belonging to early
Livingston settlers such as the Vanderpoels, Goddard, Smith Ely,
Ely-Dow, Halsey and Watson Families, as well as more modest sandstone,
marble and lime stone markers, some almost illegible due to age.
Of
historical interest is the grave of Emma Samo, wife of Abram Halsey
Ely. Emma Samo was the daughter of New York musician Isaac Samo
and Sarah Wilson, owners of Samo's Tavern, where nearly 200 years
ago the first Livingston Township meeting was held.
The last interment
was that of Janet Olstead Halsey in 1978. She was an eight generation
descendant of Capt. Ely, but no grave marker has been found. According
to a visitor's memory, she was buried near the newest Halsey family
marker, but her name was never added.
The
cemetery had been abandoned for many years, when in 1983 Trusteeship
was granted to the Historical Society by New Jersey Superior Court
Order. Since that time many members and volunteers have cleared
the overgrowth of brush, repaired many of the plots, and repaired
the stone wall and gate. Their efforts were recognized by the
Livingston Kiwanis Club with a commemorative plaque which is displayed
at the front entrance.
As court appointed trustee of the cemetery, the Livingston Historical
Society is required to restore and maintain the grounds in good
condition.
To contact the Society send an e-mail to: LivingstonHistoricalSociety@yahoo.com