By Joseph Citro, author of Weird New England
Of course to me, being a chauvinistic Vermonter (and Italian to boot), the crown jewel of all American burial spots is Hope Cemetery on Rte. 14 in Barre, Vermont. It is the Uffizi of necropolises. Situated in the proximity of Vermont’s famous marble and granite quarries, many talented stone carvers left their mark, themselves, and their families here. These artists, with names like Giuseppe Donati, Lambruno Sarzanini, Antonio Soprano, and Guliano Cecchinelli, created distinct monuments, from morbid to majestic, from classical to cartoonish. There’s a dignified replica of Michelangelo’s Pieta. Not far away you’ll find statues of a married couple holding hands, permanently tucked under the stony covers of twin beds (also statues). This is Hope’s only R-rated memorial.
There’s a white granite stock car recalling someone’s passion while remembering his undoing. You’ll also find a tractor-trailer, a basketball, an armchair, a globe, and more, reminding us, I suppose, that we can die anywhere and anything can be lethal.
While Hope Cemetery is recognized for its high art, other cemeteries are recalled for other reasons.
Coming from New Hampshire, the Granite State, I had heard rumors of the famous monument carvers from Barre, VT. But I was unprepared for the astonishing tombstones of Hope Cemetery. Opened in 1896, this graveyard is an art gallery, celebrating life in the midst of death with some of the most compelling, and quirky, tombstones in the nation.
I arrived on an appropriately gray and threatening day in July and toured, first by car and then on foot, moving from stone to stone--touching and marveling. While the average New England tombstone evokes a dull finality, these sculptures speak volumes about both the deceased and the carver.
One "final resting place" is a stuffed armchair. In another, a couple lay in their granite double bed, together as in life, pajamas on. In Hope Cemetery, the angels sometimes look bored with eternity, while massive gravestones rise like Greek temples nearby. No subject is too offbeat, personal or creative for the carvers of Barre, "The Granite Capital of the World" -- from soccer balls and airplanes, to cars and trucks. One carver evokes an image of the dead man’s wife in the smoke of his cigar. In another stone reminiscent of Michelangelo's "Pieta" a woman clasps a turn-of-the-century workman. We from New Hampshire salute the stone carvers of Vermont who refuse to give death the final word. Bravo!
– Story and photos by J. Dennis Robinson/SeacoastNH.com
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HOPE CEMETERY