CALVARY is the oldest existing cemetery that had been established by the Archdiocese of Chicago, although it is not the oldest Catholic cemetery in the area - there are churchyards that predate it. Catholic cemeteries had previously existed closer to Chicago, but health concerns and the value of the land prompted city officials to reinter bodies in more remote locations. Calvary, Rosehill, Graceland and Oak Woods all saw their first burials in 1859.

At the border between Chicago and Evanston, Calvary sits on the lakefront behind Sheridan road. Between Sheridan and the lake is a breakwater consisting of piled up white limestone boulders. The main entrance is on Chicago Avenue (Evanston's name for Clark Street), with the rear entrance directly across on Sheridan. A wide road connects the two gates. Originally, a small lagoon lay in between, roughly two-thirds of the way from the east end, but it was filled in to create shrine sections. This dramatically changed the appearance of the cemetery, as did the loss of many trees to Dutch Elm disease in the 1960s.

The west entrance of Calvary is beneath a large stone gate with three arches. The center arch is surmounted by a triangle in the Gothic style. Designed by James Egan (who is buried in Calvary), this represents the Greek letters Alpha and Omega, which are Catholic symbols of God as the beginning and the end.

Main Entrance Charles Comiskey
Colonel James Mulligan John Cuneo
Mr. and Mrs. Frank Cuneo Peter Smith
Sexton Mausoleum Mayor and Governor Edward F. Dunne
Cavin / Kane Cummings
Burke / Rainey Mausoleum Lynch's Insula
Patrick O'Brien Artie and Willie
John Cudahy Mayor Edward Kelly
Mayor Martin Kennelly Mayor John P. Hopkins
O'Brien and Brennan Mausolea Josie Lyon
"Ecce Homo" Angel
Mayor William Dever Michael "Hinky Dink" Kenna
Eugene Little Bob Figg
Senator William Lorimer Michael Cudahy
Senator James Michael Slattery Three Crosses on the Lake Shore
East Gate Gibbons' Column
Grogan Sepulchre

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© 1996-2002 Matt Hucke
All content (text and photographs) by Matt Hucke, unless otherwise indicated.