Grove Church Cemetery

Grove Church Cemetery

Gate entrance along Kennedy Boulevard.
Details
Established	1847
Location	North Bergen, New Jersey
Country	United States
Type	Nonsectarian
Owned by	Reformed Grove Church
Size	8 acres (3.2 ha)
Website	www.grovereformedchurch.org
Find a Grave	Grove Church Cemetery

The Grove Church Cemetery is a nonsectarian cemetery, located on the western slope of the Hudson Palisades, along with several other cemeteries in a string of green open space, in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. The Grove Church, who owns the cemetery, is one of the oldest religious bodies in the area, and it has had an operating cemetery since 1847. Throughout its history, prominent families have been buried there, as well as American Civil war veterans. There have also been reports of vandalism and misuse of the property since the 19th century, and in 2007 some of the cemetery grounds were occupied by the homeless.

Grove Church Cemetery is located at 1132 46th Street in North Bergen, New Jersey. The cemetery also fronts Kennedy Boulevard which in the 19th century was known as Dallytown Road, or Bergenwood Road. Overlooking into the Secaucus, it starts at the top and extends onto the middle of the western face of the Hudson Palisades. Grove Church Cemetery is one of several burial sites on the western slope, along with Machpelah Cemetery, Hoboken Cemetery and Weehawken Cemetery, which is only a few blocks away from Grove Church along with Palisades Cemetery. These grounds constitute a string of green open spaces in North Hudson County. The gated entrance is across the street, east of the Bergenline Avenue station of the Hudson Bergen Light Rail in Union City, New Jersey.

Located in then both Union Hill and New Durham, the Reformed Church at New Durham which was also known as the "Grove Church", was for many years the only Methodist church in the area. It has been operational since April 12, 1843, and was one of the first religious bodies established in the wilds of North Hudson, the Bergen Woods. The first pastor was Reverend Philip Duryee who acted until 1844, and was succeeded by William Taylor, a Rutgers graduate who later acted as pastor for a nearby Jersey City congregation. Taylor was succeeded by William Mabon in 1846. The land at the cemetery has been used for burial purposes since 1847, which has made it one of the oldest burial grounds in Hudson County. Typical grave depths are approximately five feet, and the grounds bare dry soils of yellowish earth, loose drift gravel, and pockets of sand, as well as occurrences of trap rock. Before the turn of the 20th century, there were two vaults on the premises, one made of brick and the other of stone; there are many more now. Overall, the grounds at Grove Church Cemetery are roughly 8 acres (3.2 ha). Because of the natural descent of the cemeteries location on the western side of the Palisades, ground water flows into the surrounding marshes in Secaucus, and contamination of wells, springs, and water-courses in the surrounding area is very low. Other than having a relatively large congregation, many of the church members were of wealth, and owned plots and vaults in the cemetery.