St. Mark's Cemetery Explained

St. Mark's Cemetery
Location:E. Main St., corner of St. Mark's Pl., Mount Kisco, New York
Coordinates:41.1944°N -73.7264°W
Built:1773
Architect:Brown, Thomas; Et al.
Added:June 23, 1988
Refnum:88000918

St. Mark's Cemetery is a historic cemetery located on E. Main Street on the corner of St. Mark's Place in Mount Kisco, Westchester County, New York. The earliest section was established in 1761, and the earliest gravestone to 1773. The last burial was in 1940. Established in 1761, St. Mark's Cemetery served as a burial place for the residents of what was formerly called North Castle and New Castle Corners. The eastern portion of the cemetery was the site of two different churches: St. George's, an Anglican church, from 1761 to 1818, and St. Mark's, an Episcopal church, from 1851 to 1916. The congregations of these two churches used the space around the houses of worship as a burial ground. Additionally, the New Castle Methodist Church, the forerunner of the present United Methodist Church of Mount Kisco, established its own burial ground on the west side of St. Mark's Church in 1854. Both St. Mark's Episcopal Church and United Methodist Church of Mount Kisco deeded their burial grounds to the Village of Mount Kisco in the 1970s, and today the two burial grounds are jointly referred to as St. Mark's Cemetery.

The cemetery served as a burial ground for Revolutionary War soldiers and local citizens. It served as the site of a temporary army hospital during the Battle of White Plains.[1] General Washington passed through Mount Kisco on November 10, 1776, as American troops were retreating from the Battle of White Plains to Peekskill. On what, at the time, was the Kirby estate, General Washington is said to have enjoyed his dinner seated on a large rock. The story of his evening meal has been handed down through the generations, and the rock is at the center of a small park about a half a mile southwest of the cemetery today.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Cultural Resource Information System (CRIS). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Searchable database. 2015-12-01. Note: This includes Web site: National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: St. Mark's Cemetery . 2015-12-01 . Alicia A. Jettner. PDF. April 1988. and Accompanying site plan