Millionaires Row
Misc.
The eternal addresses of some of the San Francisco Bay Area’s most prominent citizens may be found at Mountain View Cemetery’s Millionaires Row. The two lanes that make up Millionaires Row offer spectacular vistas and architectural wonders. The eclecticism of late nineteenth and early twentieth century architecture is quite evident here. Among the grand mausolea one can find examples of Romanesque Revival, Egyptian Revival, Classical Revival, Gothic Revival, Tholos forms and “uniquely funerary” styles.
Mountain View Cemetery is one of the most attractively sited cemeteries in the United States. Its 220 acres of rolling hills and winding lanes were designed by Fredrick Law Olmsted in 1863. Olmsted also designed Central Park, in New York City and Golden Gate Park, in San Francisco. Olmsted’s design for Mountain View emphasized the harmony between man and the natural features of the landscape.
Garden cemeteries, like Mountain View, were established as a response to the overcrowding of churchyards in cities and a more optimistic attitude in the culture towards death and the afterlife. The new attitudes and the bucolic settings of garden cemeteries made them an attractive destination for a Victorian family wishing a respite from the hustle and bustle of big city life.
Text and photo © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page
[address cemetery=”Mountain View Cemetery” street=”” city=”Oakland” state=”California” zip=”94611″]
