Holy Cross Cemetery (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
Our Lady of Sorrows Chapel is said to have been built in one day on Aug. 31, 1843 by 2,000 volunteers, although the foundation and some prefabrication had been done in advance. The chapel's modest design is described as a Nova Scotian expression of Gothic revivalism. The furnishings are sparse and modest but the altar reliefs have received national recognition, and the windows have been described as a nationally significant collection of stained glass.
Holy Cross Cemetery served as the primary for Halifax Catholics until 1896, and although interments continued through the twentieth-century the site had fallen into disrepair by 2005. The Holy Cross Cemetery Trust was established in 2006, and a program of restoration and beautification by volunteers has been in progress since 2008, repairing fences, the chapel, and 1800 of the current 2500 gravemarkers.
Notable interments
There are many notable persons buried in the cemetery including:
- Sir John Sparrow Thompson, Prime Minister of Canada
- Hon. Sir Edward Kenny
- Thomas Edward Kenny
- Charles Robinson (1840–1896), US Civil War Medal of Honor
The cemetery also contains war graves of nine Canadian service personnel, six of World War I and three of World War II.
References
- ^ "Holy Cross Cemetery". Saint Mary's University. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Building a Cemetery 1843". Saint Mary's University. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Research". Holy Cross Historical Trust. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Volunteers resurrect Irish cemetery in Halifax". CBC News. Aug 12, 2011. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Holy Cross Cemetery Our Lady of Sorrows Chapel". Saint Mary's University. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Holy Cross Work Finished for a Seventh Year". Holy Cross Historical Trust. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Conservation". Holy Cross Historical Trust. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ Douglas McArthur. "A historical stroll through Canada's prime ministerial grave sites". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
- ^ "Halifax (Holy Cross) Roman Catholic Cemetery". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 2 October 2015.