Guilderland Cemetery Vault

Built around 1872, this small vault sits at the entrance to Guilderland Cemetery at Osborn Corners, on Route 158 near Route 146 in Albany County, New York. Its walls are coursed cobblestone, with smooth ashlar quoins at the corners and a rounded arch doorway. The architect and builder are unknown. It is still used as a vault, and the interior can be seen by appointment. It was listed because cobblestone construction, though common across the northeast before the twentieth century, was rare in this part of the state, and the town has only several cobblestone buildings. The vault is a well-crafted, straightforward vernacular design with simple embellishments. It has survived intact while suburban development has spread toward the surrounding open agricultural land, where some quarrying also takes place. The cemetery holds the graves of many of the founders of Guilderland. The nominated area extends 100 feet from the center of the building on all sides, less than one acre.