{"nrhp_refnum":"87002301","name":"Monfort Cemetery","other_names":[],"category":"site","location":{"address":"E of Main St. and Port Washington Blvd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Port Washington","county":"Nassau County","state":"NY","lat":40.83109887300003,"lon":-73.68220127899997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1988-01-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Art","Exploration/Settlement","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A small, under one-acre Dutch family burial ground on a slope east of Main Street in Port Washington, Nassau County, New York. It was set aside from the Rapelje farm and formally established in 1786, and holds 118 marked graves dated 1737 to 1892.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the cemetery is significant for its link to the early settlement and growth of the Cow Neck (Port Washington) area. It also holds a well-preserved collection of 18th and 19th century gravestones. The changing markers and epitaphs show how local Dutch Reformed families moved toward assimilation into mainstream American culture. Many early settlers, Revolutionary War patriots and community leaders are buried there.","narrative":"Monfort Cemetery is a small burial ground of less than an acre on a slope above the eastern end of Main Street in Port Washington. In 1786 Daniel Rapelje sold about one acre of his 110-acre farm to a group of related Dutch Reformed families for use as a common cemetery. Some markers are older, with the earliest dated 1737, so the land may have been used for burials earlier. The 118 surviving sandstone and marble markers date from 1737 to 1892 and are arranged in thirteen north-south rows assigned to families such as the Onderdonks, Hegemans, Schencks and Dodges. They include soul effigy stones, plain three-lobed markers, Neoclassical urn-and-willow designs, Victorian floral carvings and plain marble slabs. Together they show shifts in religious belief and social custom among local Dutch families. Revolutionary War patriots and historian Henry Onderdonk Jr. are buried here. The town received the cemetery in 1984.","period_of_significance":"c. 1737-1886","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition with a high level of integrity; owned by the town and accessible to the public. The original farm setting has been compromised by suburban development.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:45.833218-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/87002301.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87002301/e24a5e1c66-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87002301/e24a5e1c66-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Daniel Case","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Monfort_Cemetery,_Port_Washington,_NY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Daniel Case</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Monfort_Cemetery,_Port_Washington,_NY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75319155","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monfort_Cemetery","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6899369"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/nassau-county/monfort-cemetery-87002301/"}