There is always something new at West Laurel Hill. Check out the press page often to read the latest news and happenings at the Cemetery and with the staff!
Press
Historic Laurel Hill Cemetery will kill off its green Kelly Drive hillside — in order to save it
Thousands of motorists, cyclists, runners, and rowers pass the historic Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia that rises 45 feet atop a steep slope overlooking Kelly Drive — the graveside monuments a…
Winners Selected for 2022 “Go for the Green” Awards
Winners Selected for 2022 “Go for the Green” Awards The Lower Merion and Narberth Environmental Advisory Councils and the Shade Tree Commissions of the two municipalities are pleased to announce …
22 Women to Watch in 2022
Nancy GoldenbergPresident and CEO, Laurel Hill Cemetery and West Laurel Hill Cemetery and Funeral Home As president and CEO of Laurel Hill Cemetery, Goldenberg seeks to create memorable experiences i…
Laurel Hill Receives Funding for Historic Gatehouse Renovations
PHILADELPHIA (May 2022) – Laurel Hill Cemetery has been awarded a $500,000 Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to support renovations to the h…
An urban planning leader finds new life as the head of two historic Philadelphia cemeteries.
For someone who spent 35 years working to improve people’s quality of life, taking a leadership role in the death industry might seem like an odd move. The job opportunity gave Nancy Goldenberg GCP…
The stunning rise of cremation reveals America’s changing idea of death
Pets are another matter. West Laurel Hill Cemetery in suburban Philadelphia is home to the state’s first alkaline hydrolysis machine, which resembles an oversize fish poacher. In four years, 90 pets…
Duffy’s Cut is a Story for the Ages
Five men and one woman whose remains were exhumed from the mass burial site were interred at the Laurel Hill cemetery in 2012 and they are remembered every year at a March commemoration. The skeletal …
The best places to see fall foliage in the Philly region
Most people think of Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill as historic cemeteries, but they are also an accredited arboretum, with many native and non-native trees. While both have fall foliage, arboretum …
9/11 Service Held At Heroes Memorial In Bala Cynwyd
BALA CYNWYD TOWNSHIP, Pa. (CBS) — Community members gathered on Saturday at the West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd to hold a ceremony for the day the world will never forget. The service took…
West Laurel Hill Cemetery Breaks Ground on New Jewish Section – Makom Shalom
LOWER MERION – Historic West Laurel Hill Cemetery, established as a profoundly different kind of burial place – a rural cemetery of distinct beauty and horticultural interest, announces yet anothe…
Cinema in the Cemetery: Watch movies among the gravestones in Philly and Bala Cynwyd
Gather some friends together or grab a date for the Friends of Laurel Hill & West Laurel Hill Cemeteries’ annual Cinema in the Cemetery series. On select summer nights, you can watch movies amon…
West Laurel Hill Cemetery to Open New Jewish Section
West Laurel Hill Cemetery opened a Jewish section in 2011 called Chesed Shel Emet, and it proved so successful that the Bala Cynwyd cemetery is breaking ground on a new Jewish section. To be called M…
Green burials are good for the environment. They might be even better for the soul
The hybrid model While Bixby happened upon a cemetery perfectly suited for green burials, undeveloped tracts of land for new burial grounds can be hard to come by. There are, however, plenty of exist…
What’s On & Online in Philly This Week & Weekend
Behind-the-scenes tours, new winter menus and free ice skating are on the agenda for this late February week in Philly, making for an exciting lineup of things to do as Black History Month continues. …
All the Life Thriving Among the Dead: Storied cemeteries strive to improve their biodiversity and climate impacts
Once upon a time, in early-19th-century America, people didn’t frequent parks; they recreated at cemeteries. Thanks to the so-called rural cemetery movement, expansive “groves of the dead” were …
Uncovering Murder on the Main Line and the Victims of Duffy’s Cut
A memorial was placed in West Laurel Hill Cemetery honoring the Irish immigrant railroad workers that were secretly murdered at Duffy’s Cut in Malvern. | Photo: Michael Bixler For more than 100 y…
“A Chat With” Nancy Goldenberg
Nancy Goldenberg, President & CEO of Laurel Hill Cemetery and West Laurel Hill Cemetery & Funeral Home sat down with CBS3’s Jessica Kartalija to discuss all things cemeteries in this October seg…
Ben Shibe once ruled Philadelphia baseball. But like the ballpark he built, his legacy has disappeared.
Toward the end of a June workday in 1976, after a Geppert Brothers crew had leveled most of abandoned Connie Mack Stadium, a lone sliver of the old ballpark, a main gate at 21st and Lehigh, stood in m…
Open Space & Recreation: Expanding Our Vision of Open Space and Trails
Open space, parks, and trails in Montgomery County provide an essential respite for residents to maintain their physical and mental health. However, overcrowding and limited access to parks during the…
Grave Images: A musical trip around Philadelphia’s historic cemeteries
Cemeteries are inherently interesting places. That’s true even when nobody of note is buried there. It’s the history, the architecture, the culture and religion, and the overall atmosphere. While …
President & CEO Awarded ASLA Honorary Membership
We are proud to share that our President & CEO, Nancy Goldenberg, has been awarded Honorary Membership from the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA). Honorary Membership is among the greate…
Graveyards as green getaways
Similarly, Philadelphia’s Laurel Hill and its sister cemetery West Laurel Hill were founded in the 19th century as alternatives to the churchyards. In his diary in 1835, Laurel Hill’s founder John…
‘We ask forgiveness from the dead’: Why Jewish volunteers are washing bodies in a pandemic
Patricia Quigley, a funeral director at West Laurel Hill Cemetery and a member of the Reconstructionist Hevra Kadisha, said it’s just one of many mourning rituals that have been disrupted there, fro…
The New Normal: Challenges Faced by Cemetery Administrators
Our President & CEO, Nancy Goldenberg, participated on a virtual panel discussion about cemeteries in the time of COVID-19. The session covered “The New Normal: Challenges Faced by Cemetery Administ…