Vale Cemetery and Vale Park
Why it's listed
Vale Cemetery and Vale Park cover about 100 acres near the center of Schenectady, New York. The cemetery opened in 1857 on 38 acres of steep, ravine-cut land along Coehorn Creek, which was poorly suited to development. Burton A. Thomas surveyed and designed it, with John Doyle supervising the landscaping. Winding carriage roads, ponds, wooded slopes, and ornamental plantings followed the rural cemetery ideal of a reflective, park-like burial ground. Land purchases extended it to its present size by 1911, adding later lawn-park and memorial-park sections. In 1973 the city acquired the abandoned northwestern portion as Vale Park. About 40,000 burials include re-interred colonial gravestones dating from around 1700, a Revolutionary War soldiers' monument, veterans' plots, a county pauper section, and family mausolea. Industrial leaders and General Electric figures such as Charles Steinmetz are buried here. The site was listed for its landscape design, funerary art, and its record of Schenectady's social and economic development.
Significance in brief: The property is argued to be a highly intact example of Picturesque rural cemetery design, laid out by surveyor and landscape designer Burton A. Thomas. It also reflects Schenectady's growth from a river settlement into an industrial city, through its sections, family plots, and monuments. It holds a rare collection of colonial-era gravestones and examples of funerary art.
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 04001053, listed September 24, 2004. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 907 State St., Nott Terrace, Schenectady |
|---|---|
| County | Schenectady County |
| Listed | September 24, 2004 |
| Reference number | 04001053 |
| Resource type | Site |
| Period of significance | [ca. 1700], 1857-1954 |
| Architect / builder | Burton A. Thomas (surveyor); John Doyle (landscape gardener) |
| Architectural style | No style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Social History, Landscape Architecture, Art |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Vale Cemetery remains in use as the city's principal non-denominational cemetery. Vale Park is a city park. Some landscape elements are overgrown and neglected, and vandalism has damaged some monuments. |
| Acreage | 100 |
| Coordinates | 42.80762, -73.92912 (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 04001053.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7909484
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.