Oak Ridge Cemetery

Oak Ridge Cemetery is a cemetery located in Springfield, Illinois, in the United States.

Oak Ridge Cemetery
Abraham Lincoln's tomb at Oak Ridge Cemetery.
Location1441 Monument Ave., Springfield, Illinois
Coordinates39°49′25″N 89°39′28″W
Area365 acres (148 ha)
Built1855
ArchitectSaunders, William
Architectural styleClassical Revival, Romanesque
NRHP reference No.95000986 [1]
Added to NRHPAugust 4, 1995

The Lincoln Tomb, which serves as the final resting place of Abraham Lincoln, his wife and all but one of his children, is located at Oak Ridge. A number of other prominent politicians and persons from Illinois are also buried at the cemetery.

As a result of Lincoln's Tomb, Oak Ridge is the second-most visited cemetery in the United States, after Arlington National Cemetery.[2]

Oak Ridge is the third and now only public cemetery in Springfield; the other two cemeteries were the City Cemetery and Hutchinson.[3] Oak Ridge was established in 1860[4] and designed by William Saunders as part of the Rural Cemetery Landscape Lawn Style.[3] The location of the cemetery was carefully selected because of the topography, which included rolling hills which was key in the Rural Cemetery Landscape Lawn Style. The many oak trees in the cemetery is how Oak Ridge got its name. The ridge borders low-lying Spring Creek, creating landscaped topography unusual in central Illinois.

The newest section, in the southwest, of Oak Ridge opened after 1945. The design follows the Memorial Park style cemetery in which roadways are wider to accommodate vehicles.[3]

The Cemetery has memorials for the Korean War and World War II, and the Illinois Vietnam Veterans Memorial. A museum of Central Illinois African-American history is located adjacent to the cemetery.

Notable burials

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. www.graveyards.com
  3. National Register of Historic Places
  4. Russo, Edward J. (2009). Oak Ridge Cemetery. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-7385-7723-4. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
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