Of headstones and hootenannies
bones of the city's founder rest eternal, along with others whose names
appear on street signs and schools.
Since 1842, when George Martin donated two acres of land for a
cemetery, the Naperville Cemetery has become the final resting place
for many residents.
There are farmers, society ladies, city clerks who knew how to cut a
rug, land developers, harnessmakers and mayors. Judging from the number
of American flags among the grave markers, there are patriots and
veterans. Judging from a small Chicago Cubs flag, there is an optimist.
Notables include Joseph and Almeda Naper, the city founders, and Horace
Potter, a surgeon who died in the Civil War. Carolyn Martin Mitchell,
who lived in the Martin Mitchell mansion at Naper Settlement, is here,
as areHarold White and Genevieve Towsley, former Naperville Sun
publisher and reporter, respectively.
Even older are the graves that were moved from what is now the downtown
business district to the cemetery in 1847, believed to date from the
1830s.
The cemetery is 42 acres now, and is not only a resting place for the dead, but in some cases, a workplace for the living.
The Peter Troost Monument Company, which is headquartered in Hillside,
has an office at the cemetery, where workers take orders for headstones
and grave monuments, which are made at the company's headquarters.
But even that company has a long Naperville history, with Peter Troost being the most recent owners.
Originally, Fred Long made coffins in his store at the corner of Washington Street and Jackson Avenue, starting around 1861.
Eventually, the business became part of the Beidelman-Kunsch funeral
home business, before being sold to the Troost Company in the early
1980s, said manager Helen Chevrie.
Also a tenant in the brick building, which houses the cemetery office,
is Folk Era Records. The owner, Allan Shaw, hosts informal Friday night
singalongs, where the participants often crack jokes about how the
cemetery setting ensures they won't be bothering anyone.
7/17/05
