Rust stretches before us. This is Most Holy Trinity Cemetery. It is unlike any other cemetery you’ve likely seen.
Most Holy Trinity Cemetery dates back to 1851. The German Catholic congregation of Most Holy Trinity Church established it. The church was in Williamsburg. New York City cemeteries had begun to push out of the city limits then. This was especially true around the Queens-Brooklyn border. Most Holy Trinity Cemetery sits right along Evergreens Cemetery. It is part of a cluster of burial grounds.
Notice the grave markers. Almost every one is made of metal. Originally, there were wooden and copper graves too. The wood rotted away. The copper was stolen for scrap. The hollow tin graves were intentional. The idea was that no one, rich or poor, could stand above another in death.
The rule was that no stone monuments could be erected. This enforced posthumous equality. The markers created a remarkable visual spectacle. An 1890 article described the cemetery’s monuments. They were all of wood or galvanized iron. They imitated gray granite. Nearly all had crosses. They were decorated with gilded figures. These included the crucifix, a cherub, and a lamb. They sparkled everywhere. They gave the cemetery its peculiar aspect.
Today, few wooden crosses remain at Most Holy Trinity Cemetery. The weatherworn crucifixes have lost their gilding. Large grassy areas were once filled with wooden crosses. Now, only a few markers are scattered. The rusted metal markers add to the atmosphere. Many are crumpled and peeling.
Most Holy Trinity Cemetery spans 23 acres. It holds an estimated 25000 graves. Many are a century old. Hollow tin monuments and wooden markers remain. Some monuments were copper. In 1990, two men were caught stealing them. They were tossing them over the fence into a shopping cart.
Walking here, you are likely alone. Metal statues of Mary and Jesus slowly sink into the soil. They seem to drown in earth. Rap your hand against a monument. A sonorous reverberation resounds. The L train rumbles by overhead.
Most Holy Trinity Cemetery is no longer administered by the parish. It is now part of the Catholic Cemeteries of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn.
The Bushwick neighborhood has changed around it. Few traces of the German Catholics remain. Yet, Most Holy Trinity Cemetery still holds their history. It may be warped and worn. There is an unexpected beauty here. It is a barbarous beauty. It comes from jagged edges and tumbled crucifixes.