Planning a trip to Cortland? Check out our video for visitors: "Memorializing the Deceased. Celebrating Life." (The production was funded by Cortland County, with help from the Cortland County Convention & Visitors Bureau.)
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Download and print our self-guided "cemetrail" tour -- featuring 20 interpretive signs on our cemetery's history, notable graves, Cortland's history, and more!
Read our latest newsletter (Fall 2022)
Love Cortland history? Check out our November 2017 presentation (by CRC Supervisor, Jeff Briggs) to the Cortland Historical Society!
Thinking of making a major or legacy gift to support the CRC? Visit our Angel Society page to learn more about the benefits of doing so!
See pics from our 2019 Cemetery Sweep-out Day: Many thanks to all who participated! (See pics!)
Whether its establishing a last will and testament, pre-planning one's funeral arrangements, or making clear to loved ones your final wishes for burial, cremation, or other aspects of memorialization -- it is worth it to "Have the talk of a lifetime." It will provide you and your loved ones peace of mind, and clarity and a measure of comfort in an otherwise difficult time that we must all face.
CHECK OUT OUR CEMETERY PRESENTATION
Our PowerPoint show (last updated 2012) offers a top-level view of the cemetery, the challenges we face, and ideas/steps for meeting those challenges. Interested in having a representative of the CRC speak to your group or club, community group, churches, or other gathering? Schedule a time/date by email!
If you are a native -- or friend -- of Cortland, NY, please consider a donation to the Cortland Rural Cemetery. Your gift will continue our legacy, and the enormously important mission, of providing care for our community's deceased. Visit our donation page to learn more.
MEMORIALIZING CORTLAND'S LOVED ONES FOR 150 YEARS
~ AND COUNTING.
Located just moments from the heart of the Cortland, NY, the Cortland Rural Cemetery gently rises northward from historic Tompkins Street. Spreading graciously among fifty acres of winding drives, lawns, shrubs, and trees ~ amid islands of individual graves, family mausoleums, and monument groupings, and honoring the original, 19th century concept of a "rural cemetery."
The cemetery is a restful environment far from the rush of modern life. Since 1853, its traditional character and classic landscape have made it ~ and continue to make it ~ a special place for families of the region's deceased. Visits are encouraged. Plots remain available for sale for new interments. Beautiful, peaceful, and inspirational settings with perpetual care are available throughout the park-like grounds for multiple graves, cremation burials, family plots, and private estate mausoleums.
Additionally, one hillside has been dedicated to burials for veterans and their spouses. In agreement with Cortland's Temple Birth Sholom, two sections are reserved for Jewish burials. And the intimate, newly restored Gibson Chapel is available for memorial services or group visitations, with seating arrangements for up to sixty people.
(A word about our funding: The Cortland Rural Cemetery is a non-profit cemetery not funded by the City of Cortland, Cortland County, or New York State. As such, our operation is primarily funded by modest -- and, frankly, declining -- income from traditional burials. We are also thankful for donations and grants received from our generous supporters; please visit our donations page to learn how you can become one of them ~ or contact our office if you are interested in volunteering at the cemetery in some capacity.)
BURIAL OPTIONS
The Cortland Rural Cemetery offers a range of choices for wishing to honor their deceased loved ones. Established in 1853 as a non-sectarian, non-profit institution, the cemetery offers several burial alternatives including traditional in-ground burial plots, interment in the facility's above-ground mausoleum, and a columbarium offering niches for cremated remains.
Traditional Ground Plots
The cemetery offers a robust selection of ground plots, situated on well-maintained and aesthetically pleasing lawns accented by mature trees, winding drives, and shrubbery. Here, families may inter the whole remains of their loved ones ~ or opt for burial of cremated remains in suitable burial containers.
The Mausoleum
The cemetery's mausoleum offers the additional dignity and security of above-ground burial. Accessible from the newly restored Gibson Chapel (or a handsome separate entrance), the Mausoleum affords year-round visitation in a quiet and inspirational setting. It is constructed of Italian marble and steel-reinforced concrete, with fully ventilated, clean, and dry crypts that ensure lasting protection against time and the elements.
The Columbarium
For those who wish to preserve the cremated remains of their family members and friends in an indoor setting conducive to contemplation and remembrance, the Cortland Rural Cemetery offers several dedicated locations in its recently restored, circa 1920s Gibson Chapel. Urns may be secured in niches behind oak doors or displayed in glass-fronted cabinets, wherein pictures of the deceased visible through the glass may also be added.
PRICING
Current pricing for the above options is as follows:
- Ground Burial Lots, single-grave space -- $962 each
- Ground Lots for two Cremations -- $442 each
- Cremation Niches (wood or glass-fronted) in Gibson Memorial Chapel:
- ranges from $720 to $3,604 - Italian Marble Mausoleum Crypts (casket interment):
- single unit -- $5,485
- double unit -- $11,000 - Complete pricing can be downloaded here.
A range of payment options are available.
INQUIRIES
Parties interested in touring the Cortland Rural Cemetery, reviewing available plots, or purchasing plots are encouraged to contact our cemetery office. (As staff is limited, particularly in winter months, please leave a message ~ and we will return your call promptly.)
Cortland Rural Cemetery | PO Box 288 | Cortland, NY 13045
Telephone: 607-756-6022 | Email: [email protected]
Love the Cortland Rural Cemetery? Want to help preserve our valuable institution? Your tax deductible donation is welcome! Visit our Donation page (blue button) or donate now through PayPal (yellow button)!
GENERAL CEMETERY RULES
The Cortland Rural Cemetery seeks to provide a peaceful, aesthetically pleasing, and well-maintained resting place for deceased any and all members of our community entrusted to our care. In order to fulfill this commitment – while also fostering a setting that is equally respectful to all – we have established these General Rules & Regulations (as of February, 2013). We very much appreciate the public's help in complying with them.
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