Friends Of Eastern Cemetery

Friends Of Eastern Cemetery A 501(c)(3) nonprofit volunteer group that aims to preserve and restore Eastern Cemetery.
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Eastern Cemetery (641 Baxter Avenue) is one of Louisville's oldest and most overburied cemeteries. After the discovery of overburial, the cemetery was shut down and abandoned. The Friends of Eastern Cemetery strives to restore and preserve the cemetery.

The Friends took the day off today but since I needed some steps, I walked up to the cemetery (a three mile round trip) ...
09/06/2026

The Friends took the day off today but since I needed some steps, I walked up to the cemetery (a three mile round trip) and took a look around. For those who don’t live here, let me tell you, it has been very hot and very dry. I took a photo of the bowl and the willow tree with the uncut grass surrounding it. In my time with the Friends I don’t recall it ever looking so dry. On the plus side, the growth is slowing so we can get a little ahead of Mother Nature and be ready for Veterans Day in November.

I hope you have all marked Thursday, Sept 10 on your calendar! That’s Give For the Good Day in Louisville. Every bit helps.

Enjoy the holiday!

09/05/2026

Just a reminder, no mowing tomorrow due to Labor Day. Enjoy your weekend everyone and remember Labor Day means don’t labor.

09/05/2026

Give For the Good is just a week away. I'll be giving you some encouragement between now and Septembr 10. This is your chance to support the Friends. We have 4700 followers. Can you imagine if each person donated $5., the total would be over $20,000!!!! So I am confident we can beat our goal.

Give for the Good has a number of special prizes and we could win one with your help. All you have to do is write a couple of sentences about why you donate and submit that by September 9. (That's one day before the official start date). I've already submitted my statement. Selection is random so don't worry too much about what you say. The winner will receive an extra $100 for their organization. I actually won this one year!

Here's the link. It's easy!

https://cflouisville.formstack.com/forms/whyigive_gfgl_2026

Happy Giving!

We had a fabulous turnout today. One group arrived early to avoid the worse heat of the day and slashed some of the big...
08/30/2026

We had a fabulous turnout today. One group arrived early to avoid the worse heat of the day and slashed some of the big w**ds. And we had five young men from St. X manning mowers. The three hours they worked will count toward the service hours they need to complete.

A few folks from the University of Louisville anthropology department joined us today and took their turn at the mowers. I always enjoy finding out what’s happening with the scholarly side of Eastern Cemetery.

And my fun story…two gals Nancy and Karen joined us for the second week in a row. Nancy found her great great grandparents graves, The Batmans. We know the real superheroes are the gals working in the heat to clear their ancestors graves. Thanks to everyone!

Due to Labor Day weekend, we will not be having our usual volunteer day next Sunday. We will meet again on September 13z

Well I had a scheduling snafu in my household and was unable to make it to Eastern last Sunday. But I’ve no doubt there...
08/24/2026

Well I had a scheduling snafu in my household and was unable to make it to Eastern last Sunday. But I’ve no doubt there were plenty of hard working folks still on the job. I live nearby so sometimes I just drive through to see what’s what. There are still many areas that need the big mowers. So this is my photo homage to the guys on the mowers. And we have a gal too but she is more camera shy.

See you next week…Sunday, August 30, same place, same time.

I’m guessing with the heat index we hit 100 out in Eastern Cemetery today. The heat was not kind to the big mowers as t...
08/16/2026

I’m guessing with the heat index we hit 100 out in Eastern Cemetery today. The heat was not kind to the big mowers as they suffered a number of breakdowns including broken blade and flat tire. My w**d eater was actually a good one today but despite my attempt to rid an area of vines, the w**der sucked a few up and jammed up. After some work with a clipper (thank you fellow volunteer Tracy for the assist) finally got it going again. A Knife blade would have definitely made it easier.

And shout out to whoever came by this week and did some more close shave mowing in the front! Was a pleasant surprise.

I was determined to find Mrs. Dixons (Regina Lucas!) grave and finally I did and got it a little cleaned up. As I did so I was reminded of an interview of Keanu Reeves by Stephen Colbert. When Keanu was asked what he thought happens after we die, his reply was I know the ones who love us will miss us. I thought that was perfect.

A little something for your calendar. Thursday, September 10 is Give For Good Louisville day. The Friends will again be participating in what is our biggest fundraiser. Stay tuned for more information as the date approaches.

I’m late with my usual after mowing post! Rest assured we were there and had a pretty good turnout. All the big mowers ...
08/11/2026

I’m late with my usual after mowing post! Rest assured we were there and had a pretty good turnout. All the big mowers were busy and I counted at least six w**d eaters.

As I was doing my thing, I noticed two men working hard in an area nearby. They came equipped with push mower, w**d eater and leaf blower. I was impressed with their focus on making the area as clear as possible. Later I learned they came regularly to keep the space around their family graves ready for any visitors that may pop by. They gave the space what I call “a close shave”.

When I clear an area I admittedly just strive to clear the space around the stones and hopefully uncover names and dates. Sunday I was battling low lying limbs that kept me from reaching some stones. Gonna take a little saw to clear those out. I leave that to those more comfortable with taking down limbs.

Sometimes people visit and leave some artificial flowers. It’s always nice to know people are being remembered. But I tell you in all honesty we can’t always keep them looking pretty. Sometimes the mowers and the w**ders get them. I attempt to pull them up and place them back if they look pretty new. Old ones (especially Christmas in July) don’t get the royal treatment.

Going to be hot again next Sunday but I’ll be there with my water bottle!

The rain started about noon today but not too heavy. I just grabbed my raincoat and kept going until Andy came searchin...
08/02/2026

The rain started about noon today but not too heavy. I just grabbed my raincoat and kept going until Andy came searching for the last w**d eater to put on the equipment truck. It gets too slippery on hills for those big mowers so they had to call it a little earlier.

Today I worked in the very front of the cemetery. This is an area that in the past has been kept mown by our friends in Cave Hill. Don’t know why they’ve been unable to do it this year but I finally got tired at looking at the w**ds around the stones so started attacking it. Here’s a pano shot from the side. Still much to do but better.

One of our crew saw a deer today. Maybe he’ll put his photo in the comments! I don’t know if they visit us from Cave Hill or reside in Eastern but if they eat some vegetation, I welcome them.

Address

P. O. Box 6484
Louisville, KY
40206

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 6pm
Wednesday 9am - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 6pm
Friday 9am - 6pm
Saturday 9am - 6pm
Sunday 9am - 6pm

Telephone

+1 502-773-2434

Website

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