Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock

Cremains Garden

Mon, 05 May 2025 21:16:16 GMT

Cremains Garden

Memorial bench donated for the Cremains Garden by Mr. Kevin Kanak of Ragan Monuments in Turtle Creek, PA. The bench is made of Indian Jet Black granite.

The word “cremains” is a contraction of “cremation remains.” It is a term invented by the death-care industry to distinguish the results of cremation from the act of cremation. No cremations are performed at Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock; they are performed off-site. The cremains are brought here for interment.

Veterans Memorial Stone and Benches

Mon, 05 May 2025 21:16:15 GMT

Veterans Memorial Stone and Benches

This memorial was the Eagle Scout Project of Jonathan Droznenk, Troop 61. Section 23 is one of our veterans sections, where graves for veterans are free. (Honorable discharge papers are required. The veteran’s spouse can be buried in the veterans section, but the spouse’s grave is not free.)

New Cemetery 1885

Mon, 05 May 2025 21:16:13 GMT

New Cemetery 1885

Newspaper Story on New Cemeteries, 1885

THE LOCAL NEWS (Homestead, PA), Saturday, January 3, 1885

NEW CEMETERIES

MONONGAHELA,
ST. JOSEPH,
AND ST. THOMAS

Located at Copeland Station, P.R.R., West Braddock, are most convenient and beautifully laid out grounds; all accommodation trains stop; board walk from station to cemetery; so near that carriages are unnecessary;

B & O, and P. McK. & Y. stations only one-fourth mile distant; price of lots and terms are reasonable; no more desirable burial places in this locality. Monongahela is a Protestant cemetery; St. Joseph, German [Catholic], and St. Thomas, English Catholic.

For further information inquire of H. Williams, Undertaker, Homestead.

[Note: newspaper article dates from 1885. Photograph of cemetery dates from circa 1918.]

Lincoln's Bearer

Mon, 05 May 2025 21:16:11 GMT

Lincoln's Bearer

“They Held Lincoln’s Life in Their Hands” — Article from the online historical journal, Emerging Civil War, regarding Jacob J. Soles, Private in the Union Army. He helped carry President Abraham Lincoln from Ford’s Theater to the Petersen House in Washington DC, moments after the President had been mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth on the evening of April 14,1865. Lincoln died the next morning. Soles returned home to reside in North Versailles, Pennsylvania. He worked in the local coal mines and suffered the loss of an eye due to an accident. But he lived on to the age of 90 years. He died in early 1936 and was buried in Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock.

Grave marker of Jacob Soles, a Union soldier who helped carry mortally wounded President Lincoln from Ford’s Theater to his death bed in Petersen House.

Click here to view the article

The First Generation

Mon, 05 May 2025 21:16:09 GMT

The First Generation

Article from Pittsburgh History magazine, March 1, 1990, pp. 32-40 by Eugene Levy titled “The First Generation.” — This article contains several historic photographs (black & white) from the early years of the Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock. Photographs from other cemeteries favored by Eastern European immigrants, such as St. Nicholas in the hills above Millvale and St. Joseph in North Versailles, are also included. But some unique headstones and markers in Monongahela Cemetery are prominently featured.

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Minor Historical Notes

Mon, 05 May 2025 21:16:07 GMT

Minor Historical Notes

Article from the online historical journal Clio about various minor historical connections to Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock, including the novel Out of This Furnace, which traces the lives of three generations of Slovak immigrants who lived in Braddock, PA. A recurring religious symbol in this cemetery is the triple cross of the Eastern-rite churches. Captain Bill Jones, Andrew Carnegie’s first steel-master, who died during a furnace accident in 1889, is interred here in an imposing mausoleum.

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Byzantine Chapel — Interior

Sun, 19 Feb 2023 18:20:00 GMT

The Byzantine chapel in the “A” section of the Saints Peter & Paul (St. P&P) parcel in our cemetery was built in the early 1900s. It belongs to St. P&P Byzantine Catholic Church in Braddock, PA. Several parcels of ground were dedicated as burial plots for members of the St. P&P congregation. In the past, the Byzantine … Byzantine Chapel — Interior Read More »

Wild Turkey Haven

Mon, 23 Jan 2023 14:15:00 GMT

Several flocks of turkeys forage and roost on our cemetery grounds and the nearby environs. Turkeys are very wary birds and rarely let you get close. In the autumn, however, the “Toms” become a little less wary, preening their tail feathers, displaying their tail fans, and strutting. A few hens usually provide an appreciative audience. … Wild Turkey Haven Read More »

Do Not Feed the Cemetery Wildlife

Sun, 22 Jan 2023 23:21:00 GMT

Please, do not feed the cemetery wildlife, including deer and migratory waterfowl (geese). Feeding the geese can actually harm them. Food handouts may entice them to delay their normal migration and cause them to lose their fear of most things people-related. Lack of fear can cause groups of birds to approach people and congregate … Do Not Feed the Cemetery Wildlife Read More »

Cemetery Wildlife

Sun, 15 Jan 2023 14:54:00 GMT

Our cemetery is home to a variety of wildlife: deer, geese, turkey, ground hogs, hawks, racoons and other small mammals like rabbits and squirrels (not to mention song birds). When you visit, feel free to observe and record wildlife, but please DO NOT FEED the fauna. Some photos follow below. More can be found in … Cemetery Wildlife Read More »

Ernest Gooden — American Negro League Baseball (ANLB) Player

Sat, 10 Sep 2022 20:27:00 GMT

Buried in Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock (Division 10, Row 8, Grave 46) is native Pittsburgher Ernest Gooden (b. 1900/02/04; d. 1934/10/19). He played in Negro League Baseball as an infielder during the 1920s (1921-1923). Until July 2023, his grave had remained unmarked since his burial in 1934. The Negro League Memorial Markers project (an … Ernest Gooden — American Negro League Baseball (ANLB) Player Read More »

Byzantine Chapel Located in Saints Peter & Paul Section A

Sun, 04 Sep 2022 20:49:00 GMT

Byzantine Chapel — There is a Byzantine Chapel located in Saints Peter and Paul (St. P&P) Section A of our cemetery. This section is one of the ethnic parcels where parishioners from St. P&P Byzantine Catholic Church in Braddock PA are interred. The chapel was built in the early 1900s and belongs to St. P&P … Byzantine Chapel Located in Saints Peter & Paul Section A Read More »

The Draped Urn — was a common grave marker/monument in the 1800s

Mon, 15 Aug 2022 14:56:00 GMT

The Draped Urn — was a common grave marker/monument throughout the 1800s. There are two draped urns in our cemetery, both located in Section Two near the Dinkey-Wagner mausoleum. The urn harkens back to Greek and Roman times, when it served as a vessel for cremated human remains. Interestingly enough, during the 1800s cremation was … The Draped Urn — was a common grave marker/monument in the 1800s Read More »

Treestones — Stone Grave Monuments Carved into the Shape of a Tree Trunk

Sun, 31 Jul 2022 21:11:00 GMT

Treestones — Stone Tree Trunks Used as Grave Markers There are many unique grave marker styles in our cemetery. Among the more unusual markers are stone monuments carved in the shape of a tree trunk. They often have what appears to be a scroll hanging on the tree. These markers were popular during the last … Treestones — Stone Grave Monuments Carved into the Shape of a Tree Trunk Read More »

Flags Placed on Veteran Graves, Memorial Weekend

Sun, 29 May 2022 20:41:00 GMT

Flags Placed for Memorial Day. Thanks to Rege and the AMVETS of North Braddock volunteers, American flags have been placed on the graves of veterans interred in our cemetery. Flags were placed in the two Veterans Sections (23 and 20V) and on all veteran graves in the remainder of the cemetery.