Graceland Cemetery: Landscape History and Design

Our cameras take you to Graceland Cemetery for an exploration of landscape design, architecture and history.

In this video, Graceland Cemetery trustee John Notz explains the park-like design of the cemetery.

CAF docent Mary Jo Hoag describes two monuments in Graceland Cemetery designed by Lorado Taft.

The first is Taft's famous "Eternal Silence" monument, which was completed in 1909 in bronze. It memorializes Dexter Graves, one of Chicago's original settlers.

The second sculpture in the video is "The Crusader"—a monument to Victor Lawson, publisher of the Chicago Daily News. This 1925 sculpture differs dramatically in style from Lorado Taft's earlier "Eternal Silence."

CAF docent Mary Jo Hoag gives us a glimpse at two monuments in Graceland Cemetery designed by Louis Sullivan.

First, Hoag describes Sullivan's monument to Martin Ryerson, a lumber and real estate businessman. Its style evokes the forms of Egyptian burial structures.

The second monument in the video is in memory of Carrie Eliza Getty, wife of Henry Harrison Getty—a business partner of Martin Ryerson. Its arches and organic ornamentation make it quickly recognizable as a work of Louis Sullivan.