Saint Raymond's Cemetery (Bronx)


Saint Raymond's Cemetery is a Roman Catholic cemetery at 2600 Lafayette Avenue in the Throggs Neck and Schuylerville sections of the Bronx, New York City, United States. The cemetery is composed of two separate locations: the older section, and the newer section, both east of the Hutchinson River Parkway. The Bronx–Whitestone Bridge is located adjacent to the cemetery's newer section, while the neighboring Throgs Neck Bridge can be seen from a distance.
The cemetery is owned and operated by the Archdiocese of New York. It is the only Catholic cemetery in the Bronx and is one of the busiest cemeteries in the United States with nearly 2,500 burials each year. The cemetery provides in-ground burials, in-ground crypt burials in the new Holy Cross section, Mausoleum burials and niches for cremains and burials in the base of the gigantic granite Cross located in the Holy Cross section. There is also a special Garden of Innocents where still-born and young babies are laid to rest. A portion of the St. Peters section was set aside in 1964 for the burial of the Archdiocese's clergymen.

History

The cemetery land was originally the "Underhill Farm of Throgg's Neck." It was purchased and consecrated by the forward-thinking Rev. Michael B. McEvoy, pastor from 1875 to 1885 of St. Raymond's Church, who bought the land and utilized it for burial purposes as Saint Raymond's Cemetery. Through its connection to St. Raymond's Church, the cemetery was dedicated in honor of Saint Raymond of Penyafort, a 12th-century Catalan-Spanish saint.

Lindbergh case

Shortly after his son's kidnapping in 1932, aviator Charles Lindbergh and Bronx resident John Condon met with the alleged kidnapper at St. Raymond's to deliver $50,000 in ransom money. Despite the payment, the child's body was found a few months later. Bruno Richard Hauptmann was convicted of the murder in 1935 and executed the following year.

Notable burials

  1. Henry "Red" Allen, jazz trumpeter
  2. Kyrle Bellew, British stage-actor
  3. Private William Joseph Bray, Veterans Guard of Canada service member killed during World War II; one of three gravesites of British Commonwealth servicemen at St. Raymond's Cemetery administered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
  4. James Austin Byrnes, Royal Air Force cadet killed during World War I; one of three gravesites of British Commonwealth servicemen at St. Raymond's Cemetery administered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
  5. Joseph "The Baker" Catania, mobster
  6. Hector "Macho" Camacho, professional boxer
  7. Anjelica Castillo, notable murder victim known in the press as "Baby Hope"
  8. Michael Coleman, Irish fiddle player
  9. Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll, mobster
  10. Anthony de Francisci, sculptor
  11. Francis P. Duffy, Canadian-American soldier and chaplain
  12. Lesandro "Junior" Guzman-Feliz, notable gang violence victim
  13. Billie Holiday, jazz singer
  14. Dr. L.Sullivan Ives, founder of the Catholic Protectory of New York
  15. Jackie Landry Jackson, member of girl group The Chantels
  16. James Edward Kelly, artist
  17. James Kerrigan, Civil War Union Army officer; U.S. Congressman
  18. James Morrison, Irish-American fiddler and band leader
  19. La Lupe, salsa music singer
  20. Héctor Lavoe, salsa music musician
  21. George William Loft, businessman & politician
  22. Lillian Lorraine, vaudeville entertainer
  23. Frankie Lymon, singer
  24. Mary Mallon, notable asymptomatic carrier
  25. John E. McGeehan, former New York State Supreme Court judge
  26. Arthur H. Murphy first Democratic County Chairman in the Bronx
  27. Lois Nettleton, actress
  28. John J. Nolan, Civil War Medal of Honor recipient
  29. Christopher Nugent, Civil War Medal of Honor recipient
  30. Duncan T. O'Brien, politician
  31. Thomas H. O'Shea, Irish revolutionary and US labor organizer
  32. Benny "Kid" Paret, Cuban boxer
  33. Joseph Maria Pernicone, first Italian-born bishop in the Archdiocese of New York
  34. Steve Vibert Pouchie Latin Jazz maestro
  35. Frank G Rossetti, former New York State Senator
  36. Hilton Ruiz, musician/composer
  37. Anthony Salerno, mobster
  38. Merlin Santana, actor
  39. Cristina Santiago, LGBT activist; one of seven victims killed during the August 2011 Indiana State Fair stage collapse
  40. Godfrey E. Santini, one of the Seven Santini Brothers
  41. Valentina Suriani, notable murder victim
  42. Patsy Touhey, celebrated uilleann piper
  43. Henry Paul Michael Zary, Royal Canadian Air Force Squadron Leader killed during World War II; one of three gravesites of British Commonwealth servicemen at St. Raymond's Cemetery administered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.