Hillside Cemetery named preservation priority

Historic burial grounds picked for ‘Five to Revive’

Photo by Richard Margolis/Landmark Society – Hillside Cemetery includes a chapel built in 1894 that is in need of repairs.

ROCHESTER – A historic cemetery in the Town of Clarendon has been identified as one of five preservation priorities for the Greater Rochester region.

The Landmark Society of Western New York today announced Hillside Cemetery and four other sites were included in the 2014 “Five to Revive” – a list of historic sites it has determined to be in need of targeted revitalization. The announcement was made at the Landmark Society headquarters on Fitzhugh Street in Rochester. The list includes:

Auditorium Theater, Rochester
Designated Buildings of Historic Value, Rochester
Erie Canal Warehouse, Village of Brockport
Hillside Cemetery and Chapel, Town of Clarendon
Former Trinity Episcopal Church, Town of Seneca Falls

“The preservation efforts of The Landmark Society of Western New York continue to be focused on community revitalization,” said Wayne Goodman, executive director. “This is the second year we are announcing a Five to Revive list to call attention to key properties in Western New York that are in need of investment. We can’t stress enough that these are significant historic properties whose rehabilitations can become catalytic projects for the neighborhoods and communities that surround them.

This is the second year a Holley site was picked for the list. Last year’s debut “Five to Revive” included the old Holley High School.

The Five to Revive initiative is chaired by Tom Castelein, Vice-President of Preservation on The Landmark Society Board.

“Our inaugural 2013 list of properties are moving closer to the goal of contributing to economic revitalization in their communities,” Castelein said.

The effort continues to enhance the organization’s ongoing efforts to support revitalization in WNY.

“Preservation is revitalization,” Goodman said. “Preservation creates local jobs, stimulates investment, increases tax revenues and builds sustainable communities. When residents, communities and those in local and state governments work together the possibilities are limitless.”

Here is what the Landmark Society said about Hillside Cemetery:

Hillside Cemetery and Chapel
NYS Route 237 and South Holley Road
Town of Clarendon, Orleans County

Located just outside the village of Holley, Hillside Cemetery is an active town cemetery established in 1866 and developed between 1866 and 1938. Encompassing approximately 30 acres, the cemetery is a significant example of two periods of cemetery design. Built in 1894, the elegant Gothic Revival Chapel is prominently located near the entrance to the cemetery on the west side of South Holley Road and is a primary feature of the cemetery. The Chapel has been vacant and largely unused since the 1960s. Both the designed landscape of the Cemetery and the Chapel suffer from deferred maintenance and lack of funds.

Why Selected:
The Hillside Cemetery and Chapel are important examples of historic landscape architecture and building architecture in Orleans County. They are highly visible resources at the southern gateway into the village of Holley. With such historic and architectural significance, the Hillside Cemetery and Chapel could, with proper funding and maintenance, serve as attractive assets in the Clarendon and Holley communities.

For more information on the Landmark Society, click here.