Miller Mausoleum

The George Miller mausoleum is rare both in its architecture and history. It was designed and erected by the Harrison Granite Company in New York City in 1919 in the form of a medieval “keep”. Keeps are the main towers of castles and were usually designed with enough space to serve as living quarters for the royal family in times of siege. One would think that the Miller family must have had some royal lineage in their background, but such is not the case.

The Miller mausoleum is an oddity in the funerary industry: it is a “used” or, perhaps more delicately put, a “previously owned” mausoleum. The mausoleum was originally commissioned by Adam Tindel, who bought the lot in 1919. Later that year, the mausoleum was erected, followed closely by the interment of Harris Emory Tindel. In the next few years a few more Tindels were received into the mausoleum’s crypts.

Then, according to cemetery records, on December 7th, 1928, an order was issued to transfer the bodies to another section of the cemetery and to sandblast the Tindel name off the mausoleum.

Evidentially, George Miller purchased the previously occupied mausoleum and cemetery records indicate that on January 6th, 1937 his ashes were placed in crypt #3. The next few decades saw a number of Miller family interments. The Miller mausoleum continued to be used through the 1980’s.
Text and photo © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page

[address cemetery=”West Laurel Hill Cemetery” street=”Lower Merion” city=”Bala Cynwyd” state=”Pennsylvania” zip=”19004″]