Description of Historic Place

The Elmwood Cemetery consists of a triangular cemetery property that is bordered by Elmwood Drive to the East and McLaughlin Drive to the West. Along with monuments, grave markers and family vaults, this cemetery contains mature multilevel landscaping, a chapel building and an operations building.

Heritage Value

The Elmwood Cemetery was designated for being a good example of rural cemetery design and landscaping. Its incorporation by a group of citizens as The Moncton Rural Cemetery Company in 1856 coincided with the final interments on the grounds of Moncton’s Free Meeting House in 1857. It became the Elmwood Cemetery Company in 1907. The older sections to the south include carved obelisks, elaborate family vaults, elevated plots and significantly mature trees.

Although the plots in the newer sections of the cemetery are efficiently arranged, the arrangement of the older plots was determined more so by prominence of the individual or family than by spatial efficiency. A brick chapel structure, built in the late 1920's, still exists just inside the main gates, however it is now used over the winter months as a holding place for the deceased awaiting spring burial. The Elmwood Cemetery was also designated for its significance as the final resting place for many of Moncton’s finest residents. Although a ridge was designated for use by Episcopalians in 1873, the Elmwood Cemetery remains open to all denomination. The monuments, family vaults and grave markers reflect the names of past mayors, early settlers, prominent business owners, politicians and countless others who have contributed significantly to Moncton’s history. Some of these family names include: Harris, Steadman, Lutes, Lutz, Trites, Torrie, Humphrey, Jones, Peters, Rand, Parlee, Lea, Dunlap, Cole, Sumner, Wheeler, Colpitts, Crandall and Robinson.

Source: Moncton Museum, Moncton, New Brunswick - second floor files – “200 Elmwood Dr. – Elmwood Cemetery”.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements relating to the grounds and context of the Elmwood Cemetery include:
- unique triangular grounds;
- mature landscaping;
- unpaved footpaths;
- elaborate family vaults;
- grave markers and monuments dating as far back as 1856.

The character-defining elements relating to the exterior elements of the chapel building include:
- Gothic arch stained glass windows;
- voussoir window trim;
- stretcher bond red brick walls;
- corbel brick chimney;
- lug window sills;
- steeply pitched gable roof.