Milwaukee’s Forest Home Cemetery

In his book Cream City Chronicles, Milwaukee historian John Gurda wrote, “What lies buried beneath the trees of Forest Home is the foundation of Milwaukee.” In 1849, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church purchased 72 acres in Milwaukee to create Forest Home Cemetery, a cemetery for the city and an eternal resting place for all. Increase Lapham was hired to design Forest Home based on the “garden cemetery” model. More than a thousand trees speak to its name. The first burial occurred in August 1850, and the story continues today with 189 acres of a graceful landscape and Victorian-era monuments that are measured in tons. Beneath its majestic trees are buried the city’s historic founders and developers, mayors, beer barons, industrialists, pioneering women, and Civil War casualties, whose fascinating stories are brought to life through never-before-seen photographs.