Death in New York: Graves for Mansions and Planning Your Own Funeral

Death in one of the most expensive megacities of America, like life, requires investment and careful planning. Over the past few decades, the number of places in cemeteries in New York has declined so much that a whole market for used crypts has arisen. True, it is difficult to call their budget option: the cost of even such a place in the city’s historic necropolises can reach millions of dollars. Because of the high cost of a funeral, the authorities in New York even recommend taking care of everything in advance and paying for their own care during their lifetime. ForumDaily figured out what fate awaits residents of New York after death.

Respectable eternity

The necropolis of the Trinity Church in Manhattan was opened in 1842 on the stretch between Broadway and Riverside Drive when the place near the church located in Downtown on Wall Street ended. It is here that the ashes of at least two mayors of New York rest: Fernando Wood, who twice ruled the city in the second half of the XIX century, and Ed Koch, who died in February of 2013. However, there are much more massive tribal crypts here. The richest dynasties of New York for generations buried here the members of their families.

The cemetery positions itself as the only active necropolis of Manhattan. Brochure, hosted on his website, he strongly recommends that you think about your own fate after death, but does not say anything about the cost of burial. And it soon becomes clear why.

Cemetery land is the most expensive in Manhattan. Over the past ten years, its value has increased 3 times.

However, the average price of land simply does not exist: the cemeteries of Manhattan have long ceased the free sale of land. Permission to purchase a plot is possible only under “extraordinary circumstances”. Among the factors influencing the decision, the American press cites the merits of the deceased and the presence of ancestors who rest in the land of the main island of New York.

So the administration of “the only active cemetery of Manhattan” has long been publicly acknowledged that the few remaining plots are reserved for “special residents of the city”. Therefore, when Ed Koch is buried here, buying land in 2008, говорилthat “the very idea that he would have to leave Manhattan after death causes him irritation”, the former mayor, apparently, was pretty cunning. Indeed, in order to spend eternity on this island, one desire is clearly not enough. We need money and fame, as well as the current administrative resource. Ed Koch, however, did not hide the fact that he had learned about the availability of a vacant lot from a former employee of his own administration, who had become the president of the property department of the Trinity Church by that time.

Ex-mayor repeatedly called his purchase a profitable investment: in 2008, the plot cost him in $ 20 thousand. Now in Manhattan, this is a completely different number. Last place in the underground Marble Cemetery in the East Village area was sold last year at a price of $ 350-450 thousand.

Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn is designated a National Historic Landmark. This is New York's Père Lachaise. Despite some distance from Manhattan, the necropolis also has a reputation as the resting place of the city's intellectual elite. Founded in 1838, within 20 years of its opening, this cemetery has become the second most popular tourist attraction in the United States - after Niagara Falls.

Here they still bury. Place in Columbarium is from $2 thousand to $18 thousand, plot for a single burial - $17 thousand.

It must be said that the American market logic even works in a cemetery. The more you buy, the greater the discount: a grave for two costs $ 34 thousands, however in brackets it is indicated that 6 burials can be placed on such a site, and thus each of them will cost only $ 6 thousands.

The Woodlon Necropolis in the Bronx, which once served as the last refuge for the poor in the rural suburbs of New York, is now also among the main cemeteries of the city. It is known for its memorials in memory of the victims of the Titanic wreck, as well as monuments in honor of the soldiers who died in the First and Second World Wars. Newspaper tycoon Joseph Pulitzer, author of the novel “Moby Dick,” Herman Melville, and born in Russia and the author of the hymn “God Bless America” Irving Berlin is buried here. Even 10 years ago, every 30 centimeters of land at this cemetery cost an average of $ 200. Now https://www.izakayasushilounge.com Woodlawn prices are not given, although it is known that there are free sites here too.

Family crypts are much more expensive than ordinary graves: their cost reaches $ 7 million. It is therefore not surprising that some put up these crypts for sale. However, most of the proposals of this kind belong to a different price category: the money raised for the family tomb, most often matter to people who do not have these millions.

Cemetery Second Hand

Local laws require sellers of family graves to first offer them to a cemetery that has the so-called “right of first refusal.” Only then are these lots put up for auction. However, auctions in this case are rare. Typically, sellers simply post an ad online.

Offers for the sale of crypts, published on the profile resource, are reminiscent of a similar section on the Craigslist classifieds website: a detailed description of the product being offered, operating history and sometimes even discounts - everything is simple and to the point.

“The crypt, built by the owner’s father in 1944, has been vacant since 1962. It is designed for 4 burials, but the space allows you to double their number. The decoration includes double bronze doors and stained glass windows depicting pastoral landscapes. The cemetery has already exercised the right of first refusal and issued permission for the public sale of the lot. The administration of the necropolis estimates it at $2 thousand. The owner does not have deep knowledge in this matter and asks only $400 thousand for the crypt. Cleaning of the mausoleum and other reasonable expenses associated with its sale are included in the price,” - says in the announcement of the agent representing the interests of the owner.

“A granite mausoleum with a pink marble interior is available, located in a picturesque location. The crypt is designed for 20 burials. Price: $44 thousand. Any serious proposal will be considered,” сообщает Alfred Pacheco.

“20 graves from one of New York's oldest families are up for sale at $10 each, the best value on the market. Graves are sold separately. You must be a Protestant." пишет author of another publication.

Death alone

New York is considered to be a city of immigrants, and it really is. According to statistics, at least 37% of the metropolis’s residents—a total of about 3 million people— were born outside the USA. That's more than the entire population of Chicago, America's third largest city. People come to New York to study, to work, for fame, for a dream, for money, and all these are certainly approved social values, as is the very fact of moving. However, the situation is different when it comes to death.

Hart Island is located 25 kilometers from Manhattan. This is the last refuge for unclaimed bodies. More than a million people have been buried here since 1865. All funeral expenses are paid by the state.

It is generally accepted that only poor or lonely old people usually become “unclaimed”. However, this is not always the case. Every New Yorker born outside of New York is a potential “unclaimed body.” The fact is that state laws take away only 48 hours for registration of all documents, and not always during this time can contact the relatives of the deceased. Moreover, if the family members do not pick up the body within a day after the notification, it also falls into the category of “unclaimed”. And from this point of view, immigration status does not matter. A recently arrived Mexican citizen in the US and a native of the State of Ohio can be “unclaimed” with the same degree of probability.

Finding the ashes of a relative in such a situation is an extremely difficult task. The organization is engaged in restoring information about people buried on this island. The hart island project. The new york times dedicated a large article to the stories of people trapped in a mass grave of unclaimed bodies. From the same material it follows that it is better not to fall into such databases: too many graves at Hart Island Cemetery still remain nameless.

Average

Every year 2,4 million people die in the United States, 60 thousand of them are residents of New York City. For most of them, funerals fall in the price range between luxury and poverty.

The average cost of a funeral in New York is estimated at $8-12 thousand. By local standards, the amount does not seem very large - it is only 3-4 average salaries.

However, it is worth making a discount on the high cost of living: only a rental housing can leave more than half the salary. So for many New Yorkers, burial is a significant expense.

The cost of the funeral can theoretically be compensated. Costs may cover life insurance policy. For help, you can ask the church, the union or even the state if the deceased served in the us army.

Flag on the grave of a veteran of the US Army. Photo: depositphotos.com.

However, it is recommended to rely primarily on yourself in the literal sense of the word - plan your own funeral and pay for it immediately. New York State Department of Health gives detailed instructions on this. Moreover, local authorities even released A separate guide explaining what you can save. The main advice: if there is not much money, you should give up the funeral bureau services.

But there is still no escape from the main expense item. This is the cost of a place in a cemetery. The procedure for cremation with the subsequent purchase of a place in the columbarium is in most cases a little less, but the amount still remains comparable to the purchase of a plot. Headstone placement, memorial services, and cemetery fees can add up to 10% to 100% higher end-of-life costs.

Religious services also increase the cost of farewells. In the price lists they appear as a separate line, and the performance of rituals, as a rule, falls under the responsibility of the cemetery, and not the funeral home. But another option is also possible - a church that does not have its own cemetery. So, recently funeral was held in St. Nicholas Cathedral in Manhattan Ernst Neizvestny. The legendary sculptor was buried in the Shelter Island cemetery, located far outside the City.

The only Russian Orthodox cemetery in the state of New York is located in the town of Nanuet, 50 kilometers from the city Novo-Diveevsky Assumption Monastery. In 1949, it was founded by a native of Ukraine, Archbishop Andrei Rymarenko, a follower of the Optina elders and an admirer of Fyodor Dostoevsky, who fled to Germany from the Soviet troops who occupied Kyiv. About 7 thousand people are buried in this cemetery. Among them are the widow of Peter Wrangel, the daughter of Leo Tolstoy, the white general Alexander Rodzianko and the great-grandson of Nicholas I Georgy Romanov. Most tombstones are a granite or marble Orthodox cross. In this cemetery, monuments were erected simultaneously to cadets, General Vlasov and soldiers of the Russian Liberation Army who fought on the side of the Third Reich.

However, existing and affordable cemeteries are closer. Many of them are located within the city limits of Queens. Once upon a time there were farms of Dutch immigrants there, the building was not historically dense, and the owners of these farms had tried to bury their dead closer to the house.

Flushing is one of these Queens cemeteries. It was founded in 1853. This is where jazz musician Louis Armstrong is buried. Now there is one grave for 2 places will cost in this graveyard in $ 8 100, provided that the gravestone is flat. Vertical monument will be allowed to deliver only if you pay $ 900 more.

The largest cemetery in America, Calvary, is also located in Queens. More than 3 million people are buried here. In addition to the heroes of the American Civil War, politicians and actors, ironically, in this cemetery lie side by side the famous mafioso John Dolan, who became the prototype for the hero of the novel “Gangs of New York,” and Joser Petrosino, the first New York police officer killed for his investigation crimes of that same Italian mafia. Golgotha ​​Cemetery is still in operation.

On its website you can find detailed price list. The cheapest option here will cost $4. The cemetery is formally owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, but religious restrictions have long been significantly relaxed. The main “but” for today is a total ban on fresh flowers, introduced due to the Zika virus.

***

The American departure into eternity is somewhat reminiscent of a piece of paper from an organizer, habitually filled with tasks for today, tomorrow, a month and, it seems, for the rest of your life. The topic of death is not considered taboo here. They talk about it, write about it, publish educational guides. Churches and cemeteries are often rented out - for filming, corporate events or even for weddings. Picnics and city festivals are held in cemeteries, and all this is not considered a violation of public morals. People seem to be completely devoid of the superstitious fear of death: even so, the American consciousness prefers predictability and practicality, and the market does everything to satisfy the needs of the deceased while they are still young, healthy and solvent.

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