North Carolina: Cedar Grove Cemetery
There is a very special cemetery there that touches the hearts of the local Questers chapter, Earl of Craven #1319.
Cedar Grove Cemetery is a historic cemetery located at New Bern, Craven County, North Carolina. It was established in 1800 and is surrounded by an impressive, paneled coquina wall built in 1853, which is interrupted by a tall triple-arch entrance. The cemetery contains family burial plots, some enclosed with cast iron fencing, and includes a Confederate memorial. The cemetery was owned by Christ Episcopal Church until 1853, when it was transferred to the town of New Bern.
The legend of The Weeping Arch at Cedar Grove Cemetery is that when a group of people pass through the gate, whomever a drop of water from the arch falls on will be the next to die.
The Earl of Craven Chapter is dedicated to keeping history of New Bern alive in their community by teaching about the residents of Cedar Grove Cemetery.
The Cedar Grove Cemetery has been their Preservation project for many, many years. They revere so much that they even held a new member orientation at the cemetery!
Every spring a dedicated group of chapter volunteers clean and maintain the monuments, trim up the trees and shrubs, and plant flowers.
One year they recruited several families of homeschooled children to come take the tour and help clean the stones. Projects like this plant the seeds in the children’s memories that the care of historical properties is everyone’s responsibility.
They also give many scheduled and unscheduled history tours, an occasional scavenger hunt, and a ghost tour in October.
Their restoration efforts include many New Bern residents. One such resident is the monument of Herbert Woodley Simpson, renowned New Bern architect, which received much needed restoration due to the efforts of the Questers.
Herbert Woodley Simpson designed most of New Bern's important buildings from the 1890s through the 1920s. He was one of the first native born architects working and living in North Carolina.
New Bern had a building boom at the time, and he designed impressive residences for local lumber magnates. He did so much in the area including Centenary Methodist Church, St, Cyprian's Episcopal Church, First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Temple Chester B'nai Sholem.
John Griffin, New Bern resident said: “This group does a tremendous service to the city of New Bern. The Earl of Craven Questers group takes care of, to include correctly repairing, the monuments and memorials within Cedar Grove Cemetery. Their only income to perform this work (aside from the members personal donations) is from Saturday morning guided tours of the cemetery. Support this group and their work by participating in a guided tour some Saturday in the near future.”
Earl of Craven #1319 received four International Preservation and restoration grants totaling $15,000 to protect and restore monuments as well.
