Evergreens Cemetery
Also known as: Evergreens, The
Why it's listed
Evergreens Cemetery covers 225 acres along the Brooklyn-Queens border and has been in use since interments began in 1850, after its incorporation in 1849. Laid out over rolling glacial terrain, it follows the Picturesque rural cemetery tradition, with winding drives, mature specimen trees and views toward Manhattan, Jamaica Bay and the Atlantic. Its principal buildings include a Norman-style stone chapel designed by Alexander Jackson Davis in 1852 and later altered by Calvert Vaux, a rustic summer house from about 1880, and a rusticated stone receiving vault built in 1872. Andrew Jackson Downing is believed to have had a role in the original planning, and Samuel Parsons, Jr. and Vaux helped shape the 1880s expansion. Thousands of monuments, mausoleums and family plots illustrate changing tastes in funerary art, while the burials reflect a wide mix of social and ethnic groups, including Civil War veterans and prominent local residents. The cemetery remains active today.
Significance in brief: The cemetery is argued to be significant as an outstanding nineteenth-century rural cemetery whose rolling hills, views and naturalistic plantings express Picturesque landscape design. It is also the burial place of a wide range of people from different social and ethnic groups, and holds notable funerary art and architecture. Designers linked to it include A.J. Downing, Alexander Jackson Davis, Calvert Vaux and Samuel Parsons, Jr.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 07001192, listed November 15, 2007. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 1629 Bushwick Ave., Brooklyn |
|---|---|
| County | Brooklyn |
| Listed | November 15, 2007 |
| Reference number | 07001192 |
| Resource type | Site |
| Period of significance | 1849-1952 |
| Architect / builder | Alexander Jackson Davis (chapel, 1852); Calvert Vaux (chapel modification, 1880s); N.Y. and L.I. Stone Company (receiving vault, 1872) |
| Architectural style | Picturesque Style (cemetery site); French Eclectic (chapel); Gothic Revival, Classical Revival, Exotic Revival, Beaux-Arts, Renaissance Revival monuments |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Art, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Social History, Community Planning and Development |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still an active cemetery; the document states that its monuments and grounds are well preserved and maintained, with few signs of vandalism. |
| Acreage | 225 |
| Coordinates | 40.68936, -73.89812 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
Sites (archaeological sites, battlefields, landscapes) are often listed with a restricted address to protect them from looting or disturbance. Listing is honorary for private owners; federal undertakings on or near the site go through Section 106 review, and state laws may protect burials and artefacts regardless of listing.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 07001192.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5058720
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.