Sometimes I like to photograph unusual places that have some historical interest to me personally. This cemetery is located in the city where I was born and lived until I retired 10 years ago. The cemetery is old and the land itself has an interesting history.
The Jersey City Harsimus Cemetery is located on Newark Ave in Jersey City, New Jersey. It is a very old and most interesting place. The land was a site of Revolutionary War Skirmishes and was used as an ammunition bunker during the War of 1812. Contains the graves of veterans of the Civil War, the War of 1812, the Spanish American War, World War I and World War II, as well as many early founders of Jersey City and business and political leaders. The 6 acre cemetery was abandoned years ago and nature began to overrun the grave markers and recall the land itself. Some grave markers are overrun with English Ivy. Today volunteers try to maintain the site completely through donations from the public and some organizations. This cemetery was featured in TV scenes on the HBO series, "The Sopranos." Goats have been used to roam the cemetery during times when closed to the public, as they eat the overgrown vegetation and help to clear the ground at lower cost than using manual labor. In recent years, underground tunnels were discovered that contained receiving and holding vaults with many bodies in coffins that were never buried. For those who believe in such things, it is purported that this cemetery is haunted. Several people reported seeing ghosts and feeling a presence when on the site. I was there, both in daytime and near sunset; I saw no ghosts, and none were in my photos, but I did feel a presence. Two men sitting under a tent smoking and conversing. They are two previously homeless veterans who have volunteered to provide security, and do some maintenance, on the property in return for free living quarters in the former caretaker's home, also on the property. These two men deserve a great deal of thanks from the community, for without them, the gates would be forever closed to the public.
