Laurel Hill Cemetery
Dates of Existence: 1854 to 1866 (subdivision), 1867 to 1941.
Location: approximately 55 acres between California & Geary streets, and Presidio Ave. & Arguello Blvd.
Number interred: 7,000 (1862), 35,987 (1941).
Moved to: Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, Serbian Cemetery, and Japanese Cemetery (Colma).
Records: San Francisco Cemetery Records.
Notes: The land was originally a subdivision of the Lone Mountain Cemetery. By 1909, over 40,000 lots had been sold.
“LAUREL HILL CEMETERY.—Lone Mountain Cemetery has ceased to exist, at least in name, as articles of incorporation were filed yesterday by several prominent citizens by which a certain portion of Lone Mountain Cemetery has become legally into possession of the name of Laurel Hill Cemetery. The latter is a much prettier name, but it will be a long time before this generation will consent to the change. Many of the incorporators have built expensive tombs in these grounds, under the impression that the Cemetery would forever remain sacred to the dead. The change in management will no doubt be very acceptable to the present lot holders, and small parcels of ground will probably not be held at exorbitant prices. This spot is capable of being highly ornamented and beautified, and there is no doubt but the gentlemen having control of the Cemetery will make it an appropriate resting place for the departed. The names of the incorporators are John Parrott, Nicolas Luning, H. H. Haight, H. M. Newhall, James Otis, A. Hayward, W. C. Ralston, and F.C. Butler.”
Source: Daily Alta California, 12 April 1867, page 1.
“Bill No. 6647. Ordinance No. (New Series). DECLARING THAT THE FURTHER MAINTENANCE OF LAUREL HILL CEMETERY THREATENS AND ENDANGERS THE HEALTH, SAFETY. COMFORT AND WELFARE OF THE PUBLIC: ORDERING AND DEMANDING THE DISINTERRING AND REMOVAL OF HUMAN BODIES THEREFROM AND FIXING A TIME WITHIN WHICH SUCH DISINTERRING AND REMOVAL MUST BE PERFORMED: DECLARING CERTAIN CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THE CITY AND COUNTY WILL ITSELF DISINTER AND REMOVE SAID BODIES; REQUIRING AND EMPOWERING THE BOARD OF HEALTH TO ADOPT AND PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR SUCH DISINTERRING AND REMOVAL: PROVIDING FOR THE RESERVATION OF LANDS FOR MEMORIAL MAUSOLEUMS OR COLUMBARIUMS, GROUNDS, VAULTS AND MONUMENTS.
“Be it ordained by the People of the City and County of San Francisco as follows:
“Section 1. It is hereby declared that the cemetery hereinafter described contains an area of more than five acres and is situate in a City and County having a population of more than опе hundred thousand persons, and the right of burial in said cemetery has been prohibited by law for a period of more than fifteen years, and that the further maintenance of said cemetery as a burial place for the human dead threatens and endangers the health, safety, comfort and welfare of the public. The cemetery above referred to is situate in the City and County of San Francisco, State of California, and is commonly designated by the following: name and is situate within the following boundaries, to-wit:
“Laurel Hill Cemetery, bounded by Presidio avenue, California street, Parker avenue and a line drawn northwesterly from a point formed by the intersection of the North line of Post street, extended, with the West line of Presidio avenue, to a point on the East line of Parker avenue, distant thereon 100 feet southerly from the intersection of the South line of Euclid avenue. produced easterly, and the easterly line of Parker avenue.
“Section 2. It is hereby ordered and demanded that, within five years from the date upon which this ordinance shall become effective, the cemetery corporation, corporation sole, association, or other person owning or controlling the cemetery hereinabove described, or the owners or holders of burial lots therein, or the relatives or friends of those whose bodies are interred therein, disinter all human bodies interred in said cemetery and remove the same outside of the limits of the City and County of San Francisco in accordance with and in the manner provided for in that certain act of the Legislature of the State of California, entitled, 'An Act authorizing the Board of Supervisors or other governing body of any incorporated city, or city and county, having a population of more than one hundred thousand persons, to order the disinterment and removal of all human bodies interred in any cemetery of more than five acres in extent, or from a part thereof, situate within the boundaries of such city, or city and county, and directing the reinterment of such bodies in cemeteries outside of the limits of such city, or city and county, or the depositing of the same in a mausoleum or columbarium, whenever the further maintenance of such cemetery, or part thereof, as a burial place for the human dead threatens or endangers the health, safety, comfort or welfare of the public, and providing a mode of procedure under and by which such removals may, when so ordered, be made by the cemetery corporation, association, corporation sole or other person governing or controlling such cemetery lands, or by the relatives or friends of those whose bodies are buried therein, and providing for the sale, mortgage or pledge of cemetery lands from which the human bodies are removed.” Approved June 5, 1923.
“Section 3. It is hereby declared and ordained that, unless the said bodies are disinterred and removed within the time and in the manner herein in section two of this ordinance provided, the City and County of San Francisco, through its appropriate officers, boards and commissions, will itself proceed, upon the termination of said time, to disinter the bodies remaining in said cemetery, and reinter them in another cemetery or cemeteries outside of the limits of the said City and County.
“Section 4. It is hereby ordained that the Board of Health of the City and County of San Francisco shall, within sixty days from the date upon which this ordinance becomes effective, adopt reasonable rules and regulations relative to the manner of disinterring. transporting and removing such bodies, and shall, upon adoption thereof, cause the same to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the City and County of San Francisco for a period of sixty days and shall forthwith forward by registered mail to the governing body owning or controlling said cemetery a copy thereof. Said Board of Health shall, from time to time, adopt and promulgate, in the same manner, any reasonable and necessary modifications or changes in said rules and regulations. A11 disinterments, transportation and removal of human remains from said cemetery made under the provisions of this, ordinance and under the provisions of the said Act of the Legislature, herein in section 2 referred to by title, shall be made and performed subject to the rules and regulations adopted by the Board of Health as herein provided.
“Section 5. It is hereby ordained that any cemetery corporation, association, corporation sole or other person owning or controlling any such cemetery lands from which the bodies interred therein are to be removed in accordance with the provisions of this ordinance and the provisions of the Act of the Legislature, herein in Section 2 referred to by title. may reserve sufficient land from such cemetery lands from which the human remains have been removed, to erect a memorial mausoleum or columbarium for the depositing therein of the bodies dis- interred from such cemetery lands and may provide sufficient grounds around the same for the beautification thereof, and may preserve such historical vaults or monuments as the board of directors, or other governing body of said corporations or associations, or the incumbent of said corporation sole, may determine to be proper necessary. Provided, however, that the land thus reserved for such mausoleum, columbarium, grounds. vaults and monuments shall not, in the aggregate for said cemetery, exceed in area ten per centum of the existing area of said cemetery, and provided, further, that plans for said mausoleums, columbariums and grounds shall first be filed with the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco and approved by said Board by resolution thereof.
“Section 6. This ordinance shall be in force and take effect immediately.
“Passed for Printing—Board of Supervisors, San Francisco, April 7. 1924.
“Ayes: Supervisors Badaracco, Bath, Colman, Deasy, Harrelson, Hayden, McGregor, McLeran, Morgan, Robb, Roncovieri. Rossi, Schmitz, Shannon, Wetmore.
“Noes: Supervisor McSheehy.
“Absent: Supervisors Katz, Welch.
“J. S. DUNNIGAN. Clerk. “apr8-5t”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 12 April 1924, page 22.
“Cemeteries Removal Approved
“First passage of an ordinance which will require the evacuation of Calvary Cemetery to make way for a new residential subdivision. was made yesterday by the Board of Supervisors.
“The vote was unanimous with four Supervisors reserving the right to change their vote in the event of changing developments. The evacuation is to take place within three years.
“According to Assistant City Engineer George F. Stahle, evacuation will be carried out under the direction of Archbishop Mitty with the provision that 10 per cent of the property be reserved for a mausoleum or columbarium.
“Two Streets will be run through The new subdivision. They will be O'Farrell and Baker streets with a connecting street between Anza and Presidio avenue.
“Speaking before the board. Supervisor Meyer said that no difficulty was expected in evacuating the cemetery, and that he believed Archbishop Mitty would make the arrangements without an ordinance.
“The property is bounded by Drury street, St. Joseph's avenue, Turk street, Parker avenue, St. Roses' avenue, and Masonic avenue. Immediately after the vote was taken on the Calvary Cemetery removal, the Supervisors voted, 9 to 2. to pass an ordinance for the evacuation of Laurel Hill Cemetery. The action was taken after Frank Deering, president of the Laurel Hill Cemetery Association, had asked the Board to delay passage of the ordinance to permit an agreement to be entered between the cemetery and the municipality for the conversion of the 6 acres of the burial ground into a memorial park.”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 23 March 1937, page 1.
“Laurel Hill's Removal Put Up to Voters
“Petition Carrying 10,000 Signatures Received By Registrar Collins
“The Laurel Hill Cemetery removal ordinance will be voted on by the people in November, it was indicated yesterday when a referendum petition signed by more than 10,000 voters was received from Registrar Collins by the Board of Supervisors.
“On motion of Supervisor Uhl, author of the cemetery evacuation legislation, City Attorney O'Toole was requested to draw up an ordinance repealing the Laurel Hill measure. Consideration of repeal is mandatory on the board under the new charter, but that it would be defeated without debate was freely predicted.
“BOTH PASSED
“The measure was given final passage March 27. Since that time the board has passed the companion ordinance requiring removal of bodies from the Calvary Cemetery. A disposition on the part of board members to treat both ordinances alike is a factor making repeal of the first measure improbable. …”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 8 June 1937, page 3.
“Civic League of Improvement, —- and Associations of San Francisco.
“Take This With You to the Polls…
“5. REFERENDUM — CEMETERY REMOVAL. Do you favor Ordinance enacted by Supervisors for removal of Laurel Hill Cemtery? Hebrew Cemeteries removed years ago: Masonic and Odd Fellows recently; and Calvary is preparing now to move: therefore, no exception should be made of Laurel Hill.
“VOTE YES.”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 30 October 1937.
“Proposition No. 5.–Laurel Hill Cemetery Removal. Yes—82,983. No—65,920.” [1937]
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 19 November 1937, page 7.
“Laurel Hill Cemetery
“Task of Removing Pioneer Graves Begins Today
“Removal of remains from Laurel Hill Cemetery. which holds the graves of many of the State's pioneers, will begin today, concluding a three-year controversy over disposition of the historic burial ground.
“The evacuation will be accomplished at the rate of about 2500 graves a month by the Cypress Abbey Corporation, owner of the property comprising Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, Olivet Memorial Park and Greenlawn Memorial Park. Some 38,000 are buried in the cemetery.
“The remains will be placed in suitable containers and stored in the catacombs and vaults of the Cypress Abbey Corporation at Lawndale until construction of a mausoleum. where they can be permanently stored. Site for the mausoleum, which will be located at Lawndale, will be selected in the near future, according to trustees of the Laurel Hill Cemetery Association.
“The trustees said many lot-holders have requested that the remains of relatives buried at Laurel Hill be transferred to family plots in Lawndale cemeteries. On receipt of sufficient notice, this will be done at the expense of the Laurel Hill Association.
“Following complete disinterment. the 50-acre cemetery grounds will be sold to defray expenses of the removals, the construction of the new mausoleum and the establishment of a fund for its permanent care.
“An ordinance ordering evacuation of the cemetery was passed by the Board of Supervisors in April 1937 and was upheld by popular vote the following November. Directors of the association and lot-owners have sought to save one-third of the property for the establishment of a State memorial park, but it was later decided that the entire property would have to be sold in order to meet the cost of the evacuation.”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 26 February 1940, page 13.
”… On the first Monday in March, 1944, legal title to 55.3 acres of land situated in San Francisco was vested in the appellant. The tract was assessed at a valuation of $189,510, for the land and $1,300 for improvements. The grounds of protest were of course the same as those presented to the trial court and on this appeal.
“During the period from 1854 to 1941 this tract was dedicated and used as a cemetery, and upwards of 38,000 bodies had been buried therein. Burials in San Francisco after August 1, 1901, were prohibited by law, but it was not until 1937 that the supervisors ordered the removal of all bodies from the cemetery. By early 1941, 35,987 bodies had been removed by the association and placed in a temporary mausoleum at Lawndale [Colma], in San Mateo County, where they are now, awaiting the construction of a permanent memorial mausoleum. On February 7, 1941, notice of the removal of all bodies was recorded and on March 10, 1941, the Superior Court by its decree declared that the 55-acre tract, theretofore dedicated as a cemetery, was no longer so dedicated. This brought to a close the first phase of the Laurel Hill operation. …”
Source: Laurel Hill Cemetery Ass'n v. City and County of San Francisco, City. 13404 (1947).
“Postwar Housing.
“S.F. Syndicate Plans 100 Acre Homes Project
“A newly organized syndicate of prominent San Francisco builders reported yesterday they will start construction on a $45,000,000 super post-war residential project on the day following the signing of the peace.
“The report was made through R.D. Lang and J. William Jones of the Lang Realty Co., who said that deals had been completed yesterday for the purchase of Calvary and Laurel Hill cemeteries, involving sums close to $2,225,000 for the land alone.
“Lang said he was acting for a new syndicate, called the Mayfair Heights Corporation, which had completed plans to turn the 100 acres of the two cemeteries into a modern contour-planned residential area of apartment houses and flats.
“$1,000,000 PAID
“The purchase of Calvary Cemetery from the Catholic church was completed for a sum close to $1,000,000, Lang said. This amount included expenses of moving 58,000 bodies from the land three years ago and preparing the property for development.
“The Laurel Hill cemetery, also vacated three years ago, was purchased from the Heyman Brothers, prominent San Francisco builders, for about $1,250,000. This firm purchased the land from the Laurel Hill Association in 1941 at a reported price of $700,000.
“The Mayfair Heights Corporation is now drawing up plans to build $25,000,000 worth of apartment houses and flats on the Laurel Hill site and $15,000,000 of the same type of modern structure on the Calvary site. …”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, 7 October 1944, page 1.
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