Benicia City Cemetery
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NPS Form 10-900 OMB Control No. 1024-0018 expiration date 03/31/2022 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Registration Form This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register Bulletin, How to Complete the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, and areas of significance, enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions. 1. Name of Property Historic name: Benicia City Cemetery DRAFT Other names/site number: Benicia Pioneer Cemetery; Bridgeview Heights Cemetery; Cemetery Hill Name of related multiple property listing: N/A (Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing) 2. Location Street & number: Bounded by Riverhill Drive (to the east), Riverview Terrace (to the north), Shirley Drive (to the west), and Incline Place (to the south). City or town: Benicia City State: CA County: Solano (095) Not For Publication: N/A Vicinity: N/A 3. State/Federal Agency Certification As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this X nomination ___ request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property ___ meets ___ does not meet the National Register Criteria. I recommend that this property be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance: ___national ___statewide ___local Applicable National Register Criteria: ___A ___B ___C ___D Sections 1-6 page 1 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB Control No. 1024-0018 Benicia City Cemetery Solano County, CA Name of Property County and State 4. National Park Service Certification I hereby certify that this property is: entered in the National Register determined eligible for the National Register determined not eligible for the National Register removed from the National Register other (explain:) _____________________ Signature of the Keeper Date of Action 5. Classification Category of Property Ownership of Property (Check only one box.) (Check as many boxes as apply.) Building(s) ☐ Private: ☐ District ☒ Public – Local ☒ Site ☐ Public – State ☐ Structure ☐ Public – Federal ☐ Object ☐ Sections 1-6 page 2 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB Control No. 1024-0018 Benicia City Cemetery Solano County, CA Name of Property County and State Number of Resources within Property (Do not include previously listed resources in the count) Contributing Noncontributing 0 1 buildings 2 0 sites 0 0 structures 8 0 objects 10 1 Total Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register 0 6. Function or Use Historic Functions Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions.) (Enter categories from instructions.) FUNERARY/ Cemetery FUNERARY/ Cemetery 7. Description Architectural Classification Materials: (enter categories from (Enter categories from instructions.) instructions.) No Style Principal exterior materials of the property: CONCRETE STONE - sandstone, marble, granite METAL – wrought iron Sections 1-6, page 3 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB Control No. 1024-0018 Benicia City Cemetery Solano County, CA Name of Property County and State Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current physical appearance and condition of the property. Describe contributing and noncontributing resources if applicable. Begin with a summary paragraph that briefly describes the general characteristics of the property, such as its location, type, style, method of construction, setting, size, and significant features. Indicate whether the property has historic integrity.) Summary Paragraph Established in 1847 as part of the city’s original plan, the Benicia City Cemetery is a 20.12-acre burial ground in Benicia, Solano County, California. The active cemetery is home to over 4,000 interments, representing people of various faiths, diverse backgrounds, multiple countries of origin, and over 1,200 unique family surnames. Prior to the establishment of other local cemeteries associated with specific groups, the secular Benicia City Cemetery was the only burial place, and it provided for people of all backgrounds. The cemetery was sited upon a hill outside the primary business corridor, creating sweeping views of the community below and of the Carquinez Strait. Vegetation at the property has slowly increased over the decades from a bare landscape to one punctuated with trees and shrubbery. There are no dramatic landscape features; however, the mature trees lining the perimeter of the property, as well as other vegetation, are a character- defining feature. Other character-defining features include the plot grid pattern, the collection of grave markers, monuments, and vaults, the circulation pattern (roadway), and the larger plots that are delineated with fencing or curbs. The Benicia City Cemetery has 10 contributing features, including selected notable grave markers and monuments, and 1 noncontributing feature. The cemetery retains sufficient historic integrity to convey its historic significance. Narrative Description Established in 1847, the Benicia City Cemetery is a 20.12-acre burial ground in Benicia, Solano County, California. It contains over 4,000 interments (the exact number is not known) and continues to operate as an active cemetery. The cemetery is maintained by the Benicia City Parks and Community Services Department. The cemetery is nearly rectangular in plan, with slight property-line accommodations for adjacent streets and developments. It is bounded on all sides with residential subdivisions that date primarily to the 1970s and 1980s. Riverview Terrace bounds the cemetery to the north, and Riverhill Drive to the east. The south edge of the cemetery abuts the rear property line of houses fronting Incline Place, while the west side of the cemetery adjoins the rear property line of residential properties fronting Shirley Drive. The cemetery district is located approximately 1-mile northeast of Benicia Point, the convergence of First Street, city wharf, and the former terminus of the Southern Pacific Railroad branch line. The city’s founders sited the cemetery on blocks 113 and 114 of the original city plan, well outside of the downtown commercial and wharf areas. Population: The following statistical information provides a brief snapshot of the approximately 3,250 known burials, which helps to provide a better understanding of the cemetery’s history and development. For example, the cemetery was most active at the beginning of the twentieth century, between 1900 and Section 7, page 1 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB Control No. 1024-0018 Benicia City Cemetery Solano County, CA Name of Property County and State 1925. Burials spiked in 1918 (47 known interments), likely due to World War I casualties and the influenza epidemic of that year. In general, the average age at the time of death increased over the decades. Year of Death and Average Age 80 70 72 800 66 70 58 700 56 60 49 600 50 500 40 400 29 26 30 300 20 200 10 100 Number of Interments 10 165 403 737 652 349 303 123 Average Age at Time of Death 0 0 Number of Interments Average Age The most common surname in the Benicia City Cemetery is Silva (30 interments), which is of Portuguese/Galician/Jewish origin. Other common surnames are as follows: Common Locations in the Surname Count 1840s Surname Origin Silva 30 LA, NY, OH Portuguese, Galician, and Jewish (Sephardic) Smith 24 NY, PA, others English Clark 23 NY, others English Danish, Norwegian, Dutch, and North Hansen 23 NY German Wilson 23 NY, OH, PA English, Scottish, and northern Irish Brown 22 NY, OH, PA English, Scottish, and Irish Johnson 21 NY, OH, others English and Scottish Williams 19 NY, OH, PA English (also very common in Wales) English, Scottish, Irish, French, Dutch, German, Czech, Slovak, Spanish (Martín), Martin 16 NY, OH, PA, VA Italian (Venice), etc. Borges 15 NY, IL Catalan, Portuguese, German, Danish Walsh 15 NY, others Irish White 15 NY, OH, PA English, Scottish, and Irish Anderson 14 NY, OH, PA, IN, KY, VA, TN Scottish and northern English Costa 14 LA, NY Greek origin Dalton 14 NY, OH, KY, VA, TN, NC English Section 7, page 2 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB Control No. 1024-0018 Benicia City Cemetery Solano County, CA Name of Property County and State Common Locations in the Surname Count 1840s Surname Origin Barry 13 NY, MD Irish Duvall 13 MD, KY English Jensen 12 N/A Danish, Norwegian, and North German Johnston 12 OH, PA English and Scottish Peters 12 NY, PA, OH, VA English, Scottish, Dutch, and North German Sanborn 12 NH English Wade 12 NY, OH, VA, TN, GA English Allen 11 NY, others English and Scottish Dondrado 11