Evergreen Cemetery marks 169th anniversary with new services

Press release from City of Gainesville

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – City of Gainesville officials invite all neighbors to a celebration at Evergreen Cemetery to showcase recent and upcoming changes to the City’s historic municipal cemetery, established in 1856.

When: 1-3 p.m. on Sun., Feb. 23

Where: Evergreen Cemetery, 401 SE 21st Ave.

Earlier this month, the Gainesville City Commission approved revisions to the Evergreen Cemetery ordinance to allow for new services including natural burials, a designated pet cemetery, and taller headstones to mark individual grave sites.

The City also will begin construction of a columbarium, or wall of niches to hold urns, at the cemetery. Prior to the commission’s vote, the municipal cemetery did not have a designated public space for cremated remains.

Attendees also will see the newly completed renovations to the cemetery’s entryway and learn about the new on-line gravesite locator.

Prior to the City’s acquisition of the cemetery in 1944, some 200 trees were planted to honor residents who died during World War I. In the past three years, the city has planted nearly 100 additional trees to create an accredited arboretum at the cemetery. An arboretum is a specialized botanical garden featuring trees.