The Vanderbilt Family Cemetery and Mausoleum is on the eastern slope of
Todt Hill,[3] adjacent to the Moravian Cemetery located at 2205
Richmond Road. The cemetery opened in 1740 and is the largest and oldest active cemetery on Staten Island.
Todt Hill is the highest natural point on the Eastern Seaboard between Cape Cod and Florida, rising to 410 feet (120 m).[3]
History
In 1865,
Cornelius Vanderbilt gave the Moravian Church 8.5 acres (3.4 ha). Three years later, he donated an additional 45 acres (18 ha), which is the majority of the Moravian Cemetery and the site of the private Vanderbilt plot. Later, his son
William Henry Vanderbilt gave a further 4 acres (1.6 ha) and constructed the residence for the cemetery superintendent. William commissioned the family mausoleum, and was the richest person in America when he died in December 1885.[1]
Mausoleum
The Vanderbilt mausoleum, designed by Richard Morris Hunt and constructed in 1885–1886,[3] is part of the family's private cemetery adjacent to Moravian cemetery. Hunt's design was inspired by the 12th-century Romanesque
Saint-Gilles-du-Gard Abbey near
Arles,
France. The landscaped grounds around the mausoleum were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The Vanderbilt section is not open to the public. Interment within the mausoleum was reserved to those with the Vanderbilt name, including sons, their wives, and unmarried daughters. It houses the remains of all four of William and Maria's sons and three of their wives.[1]
The nonprofit Vanderbilt Cemetery Association was created in 2010 by members of the Vanderbilt family to help preserve and protect the property.
Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt III is chairman.[7]
Notable burials
Notable burials in the Vanderbilt family's private section within the cemetery include:[1]
Cornelius van Derbilt (1764–1832), father of Cornelius.
Phebe van Derbilt (née Hand) (1767–1854), mother of Cornelius.