Nyack, New York is one of the most driven-through of the Hudson River villages in the Mid-Hudson Region. The western terminus of the new Mario Cuomo Bridge, it was also the place where the old Tappan Zee touched the west bank of the Hudson River. The cemetery was opened in 1865, although it has older graves in it! These are the graves of people buried in an even older cemetery that had flooded. An association to create the cemetery dates back to 1848 and there are mentions of it being dedicated in that year. The cemetery has an impressive Civil War monument, surrounded by the graves of a number of veterans of the war.
The historical sign outside the cemetery says: This nonsectarian cemetery was dedicated on June 27, 1848 before a crowd of 3,000 people. The establishment of the cemetery reflected a transition from small family or religious cemeteries. Oak Hill Cemetery has been enlarged several times and occupies 65 acres. It is the final resting place of the founders of Nyack and other area families, including veterans, artists, writers, and scientists, among many others. Earlier burials from some small local cemeteries were transferred here.
The Civil War monument is on a high hill in the middle of the cemetery. Below I could see the village of Nyack, the Tappan Zee, and the Mario Cuomo Bridge. It was a rainy day but the views were still striking.
The Tappan Zee is a stretch of the Hudson River that is three miles wide and about ten miles long, from North to South. On September 14, 1609 the explorer Henry Hudson sailed up the Hudson River and entered the Tappan Zee. He believed that he had found a passage to the western ocean, the Pacific. The name comes from the Lenape word Tuphanne, believed to mean “cold water,” and Zee, Dutch for “sea.” While Hudson may have initially thought he had found the Northwest Passage here, he sailed further north to what is now Troy and saw the river narrow again. Wherever the river led to, it did not lead to China, he concluded.
In the early 1800s, Nyack was a center of sandstone quarrying for new buildings in New York City. Shoe making and boat building also became important industries in the village, which had about 3,000 people during the Civil War. When the war began, many early enlistees joined the 17th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The regiment, consisting of men from New York City, Westchester, Rockland and other counties, was mustered into service on May 28, 1861 in New York City. This photo shows the 17th New York on parade during the Civil War.
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The dedicated Civil War plot is excellently maintained with small shrubs around the statue and American flags decorating the graves.
There are also benches for those seeking a rest after walking the cemetery, or for prayer and meditation. The site itself is easily accessed by the cemetery’s roads with parking within thirty feet of the entrance to the Civil War section.
The monument is enclosed by an iron fence with a cannon in front of the monument. It is surrounded by the graves of soldiers of the Civil War. As you can see in this photo, the statue overlooks the Hudson River.
The base of the monument has the emblem of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), the largest Union veterans organization.
Here is another view of the emblem.
At the time of the dedication of the statue in 1877, the Rockland County Journal said that there were 29 soldiers of the Civil War interred in the cemetery.
The site also has an American flag, making it easy to find.
Here is the site from the rear. As you can see in this photo, the base displays an anchor representing the Navy.
The statue’s base also contains a symbol representing the Infantry. While most of the graves nearby are of infantrymen, I also saw heavy artillerymen from the 5th and 6th New York Heavy Artillery as well.
Here the GAR emblem is clearly displayed on the base.
The statue itself provides a wonderful image of a young soldier with a pensive expression on his face. The uniform looks real with wrinkles and creases.
You can see the face clearly in this photo.
The Richard Kelly grave is within the enclosure. Kelly was in the 127th New York Infantry Regiment which raised its men in New York City, Brooklyn, and on Long Island.
Jerimiah Springsteen’s grave inside the monument space says that the 21 year-old died on August 7, 1862. He was a member of the 95th New York Regiment of Volunteers. This regiment included a company, the “Warren Rifles”, from Rockland, New York. The commander of the Regiment, Col. Pye, is also buried in Oak Hill.
There are a number of graves in the enclosure around the monument.
All elements of the site are well preserved from 1877. I have been told that the cannon is likely a 3 Inch Ordinance Rifle from the Civil War Era.
Another view from just outside the Civil War enclosure.
Although the site is only nineteen miles from New York City, it is heavily wooded and deer and other wildlife abound.
I saw a group of six deer from the statue enclosure.
Near the cemetery is this Underground Railroad marker. A house demolished in the 1970s there was the home of Cynthia Hesdra and her husband Edward. Cynthia was born into slavery in Rockland County in 1808 during the last years of slavery in New York State. Cynthia owned the home that the historic marker commemorates (without mentioning her name). She married Edward Hesdra, a Virginian who was the son of a white man and a free Black woman from Haiti. Cynthia Hesdra was a successful businesswoman, owning a laundry in New York City and investing in real estate in Nyack and New York. Edward, who was said to be mixed-race and Jewish, was in the furniture business. After achieving business success, the couple moved to Nyack, where they reportedly sheltered runaway slaves travelling to Canada along the west bank of the Hudson River.
Note: All photos were taken by Pat Young.
