Historic Monument Conservation

Green-Wood Cemetery, located in Brooklyn, New York, is one of the oldest rural cemeteries in America. Thousands of monuments to many of the nation’s most distinguished citizens are sited within its rolling hills. The cemetery and several of its structures are local and national historic landmarks.

In recent years, as internments have decreased due to lack of space, the cemetery has turned toward viewing itself as a historic resource. Our conservators have advanced this effort by assessing and treating many of the most important monuments on the site. Assessments by us include the Brown family monuments that depict the tragic sinking of the Arctic and loss of this banking family’s members.

Treatments were performed on the DeWitt Clinton monument, the Litchfield family monuments, the Stewart Memorial, the Henry George monument, the Minerva and Angel statues, and several others. The work included assessment, stabilization, cleaning, replication of missing elements, repairs, repointing, patination and coating of the bronzes. We also started an assessment and training program with the cemetery’s staff to reduce damage to the monuments during grounds maintenance and to perform simple maintenance procedures. In addition, we supported the cemetery’s fundraising efforts and budgeting for care of individual monuments and groups.