This popular event is back for 2017 and better than ever! Niblo’s Garden was once one of New York City’s largest and most elaborate theaters (at Prince and Broadway in SoHo) replete with sparkling lanterns, fountains, a festive open-air restaurant and bar, and featuring the top musicians, dancers, and entertainers of the time. Owner and impresario, William Niblo, an eccentric himself, was known to invite friends to the site of his elaborate mausoleum at Green-Wood, built for his dearly departed wife, turning the lakeside burial plot into a pleasure garden of its own. He was said to have visited the mausoleum on a daily basis, bringing friends, picnicking and even stocking the nearby pond with goldfish.

Green-Wood is an inspirational landscape any time of day, but it is especially wondrous after sunset. Sean Sime, who has over 20 years of professional experience in journalism, fashion, and documentary photography, will lead an exclusive after-hours workshop in twilight and nighttime photography to capture the atmospheric beauty of the cemetery.

A peaceful hush falls over Green-Wood’s each night. In near darkness, centuries-old monuments stand guard over those laid to permanently rest within. This year, Atlas Obscura and Green-Wood Cemetery are collaborating to present The Secret Mausoleum Club, as we open the cemetery’s historic gates and selected mausoleums for an extraordinary series of after-hours explorations through history.

The Ninth of Av (Tisha b'Av) is a solemn date on the Hebrew calendar, marking the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem and the loss of an ancient and sacred civilization. A stunning and historic site, Green-Wood's grounds will provide us a unique entry into the meaning of this holy day and the sacredness of life.