Do you dream of spending an eternity in San Francisco? It’s not easy since cemeteries were outlawed in the city in the 1940s. But there is still one place where you can be laid to rest under the city’s foggy skies – the Columbarium.
It’s a neoclassical, domed structure that sits just behind Geary Street near Arguello on Loraine Court. It was built in 1898 as an accompaniment to the crematorium in the neaby 167-acre Odd Fellows Cemetery. The cemetery closed in the warly 1900s, and remains were moved out to Colma in 1929. (Video: More on the Richmond District’s cemetery history)
On Tuesday the Neptune Society, who has owned the Columbarium since 1980, will announce plans to expand by adding three new Halls of niches for inurnments, as well as a new exterior garden.
The new building will be called The Hall of Olympians, with each room named after an Olympian in Greek mythology. It will open in spring 2012 and will contain around 500 niches.
After that, they’ll get to work on two additional halls – the Hall of Titans and Hall of Heroes – which altogether with the Hall of Olympians will provide an additional 5,300 niches. The current Columbarium building houses 8,500 niches, housing the remains of just over 30,000 people.
Many of the niches in the Columbarium contain pictures and personal memorabilia that provide insight into the lives of those interred. Even the urns themselves often reflect the individual’s personality. Cookie jars, teapots, brandy decanters and piggy banks have been used to celebrate the memory of loved ones.
Tuesday’s event will also feature Emmitt Watson, the charismatic Columbarium caretaker who is well-known for his tours of the building. Employed at the Columbarium since 1980, Watson has spent years becoming familiar with the niches and listening to visiting families’ stories as he worked on the building’s restoration. The personal anecdotes and intimate details Watson reveals on his tour transforms a typical tour into a touching trip down memory lane.
Watson told The Chronicle in May that his favorite Columbarium resident “is Miss Lily Moy, because she was a baseball fan and she’s in a big baseball.”
The Columbarium’s multi-million dollar expansion means that more generations of San Franciscans can be laid to rest within the borders of San Francisco. The Columbarium is the only non-denominational burial place within San Francisco’s city limits, with space available, that is open to the public.
Tuesday’s groundbreaking event will take place at 10am at the Columbarium, 1 Loraine Court. Expected to attend are Senator Leland Yee and Richmond District Supervisor Eric Mar.
Sarah B.
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