‘Peaceful be thy silent slumber’

The old, new and the modern on display in Hudson County tombstones

A great deal of Hudson County history is on display in the countless tombstones that mark the final resting places of earlier generations. North Bergen’s Mac Phelah Cemtery and Flower Hill Cemetery have long been the final destination for Hudson County residents. Jersey City’s Harsimus Cemetery and Holy Name Cemetery have also become part of history in remembrance of those who have passed on.
The stone markers, some of them approaching works of the sculptor’s art, are memorials for those who, as some tombstones say, are “Loved, missed and remembered” and placed with a simple wish: “Peaceful be thy silent slumber.”
The once bare and bland tombstones on the earliest years of American history are no more. They have been replaced with beautifully carved markers set in green landscapes. Where cherubs once were the norm, now life-like statues, chess-like pieces and tombstones that appear to be graves are the new ways of remembering loved ones.

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