Ferdinand Ward was the greatest swindler of the Gilded Age, whose villainy bankrupted Ulysses S. Grant and stunned the world of finance. His fascinating story has been extensively researched by his great-grandson, award-winning historian Geoffrey C. Ward, author of A Disposition to be Rich. Drawing upon thousands of never before seen family documents, Geoffrey traces ... Read more

Opening its gates in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1831, Mount Auburn was America’s first rural cemetery, providing the model for cemeteries across the country—including Green-Wood! The list of luminaries buried within it is endless, including painter Winslow Homer, reformer Dorthea Dix, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and collector extraordinaire Isabella Stewart Gardner. Set among its 175 acres ... Read more

Back by popular demand! Green-Wood Historian Jeff Richman leads you on this behind-the-scenes look at the Cemetery’s extensive holdings of historical artifacts and ephemera. Acquired over the past twenty years, there are now over 10,000 items in the collection, unrivaled by any other cemetery in the United States. These items help illuminate the stories of ... Read more

“Weep not that the world changes—did it keep a stable changeless state, it were cause indeed to weep. ”― William Cullen Bryant Sadly, in the current climate, our thoughts are more fixated on death than ever, and anxieties are running high. It is highly possible that someone you know has died or that you have ... Read more

It’s your best opportunity to time travel back in time to the New York City that you were born too late to live in! Over a span of four decades, Jeff Kraus has put together an extraordinary collection of stereoviews of life in the burgeoning metropolis. In the nineteenth century, stereoviews were a popular type ... Read more

Green-Wood provides a rich habitat for mushrooms and other fungi throughout the year. In the summer the charismatic mycorrhizal mushrooms (don’t worry, we will fill you in on what that means) flourish among the old oaks and pines. But what about in the winter? Ethan Crenson and Sigrid Jakob, both longtime members of the New ... Read more

While the colorful trees and migrating birds of Green-Wood get lots of buzz, visitors might not know about the bounty of mushrooms sprouting throughout the Cemetery’s 478 verdant acres. Join Sigrid Jakob and Ethan Crenson, longtime members of the New York Mycological Society, for a socially distanced mushroom walk to discover Green-Wood’s winter fungi. Not ... Read more

In just four years, more than 750,000 soldiers and civilians lost their lives in the Civil War, leaving behind a grim landscape of death and destruction. Historian Drew Gilpin Faust weaves together a complex narrative of national grief, shared by both northerners and southerners, in her extraordinary and landmark book, This Republic of Suffering: Death ... Read more

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990), who counts among Green-Wood’s permanent residents, was a true renaissance man of the twentieth century: conductor, composer, activist, and educator. Whether you know him from his work with the New York Philharmonic, sung along with Broadway megahit “West Side Story,” or watched his “Young People’s Concerts” on TV, it’s safe to say ... Read more

Life after death takes on a new meaning when discussing the Charlotte Canda monument and the cult fascination that has gripped Green-Wood’s visitors since it was erected. Often the poster child for Green-Wood in early guidebooks from the mid-1800s, the Canda gravesite is exemplary not only for its ornate decoration, but also for the tragic ... Read more

Death is universal, but its aftermath can be difficult—particularly when no one has money for a funeral. What happens to those who die with no family and no money? Social anthropologist Sally Raudon has traveled the world, exploring that issue across many cultures. Join Raudon and Green-Wood Historian Jeff Richman for a discussion about how ... Read more

What can we glean from the grief of the great American military battles, the AIDS Epidemic, 9-11, and Sandy Hook that is applicable to these uncertain days of the novel coronavirus? A great deal, as it happens. While commemorative flags, quilts, wreaths, home altars, obituaries, grave markers, scrap books, and stories are as relevant as ... Read more

Before our gates open to the general public, birding expert Rob Jett leads these peaceful Sunday morning walking tours to discover the many birds that call Green-Wood home.

Love and death. They have inspired artists, writers, and philosophers for millennia. But do you know they are perfectly intertwined? At a cemetery! Forget the box of chocolates and sappy card—treat the special someone in your life to an exploration of Green-Wood. Along the way you will hear tales of the lovesick and the heartbroken, ... Read more

New Yorkers have long desired to escape the hustle and bustle of city life. Their first chance came in 1838 when Green-Wood opened far off in the city of Brooklyn, and quickly became a major tourist destination. Twenty years later came Central Park, designed by masterminds Olmsted and Vaux, which offered its own unique landscape ... Read more

BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) horticulturists’ understanding of plants and nature is often grounded in different perspectives than the institutions in which they work here in the United States. Intentionally or unintentionally, both public and private gardens currently fail to integrate BIPOC expertise and knowledge in their garden operations. How can institutions integrate ... Read more