Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum, Altadena, California

Date: 1882
Location: Altadena, Los Angeles, California, United States
Surname/tag: Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum, Altadena, California

General Information

Cemetery name: Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum; (also known as 'Chapel of the Garden' and 'Friends Burying Ground Pasadena')

Address: 2400 N Fair Oaks Avenue, Altadena, Los Angeles, California 91001

GPS Coordinates: 34.1861000, -118.1481018

History

The cemetery was established in 1882 and the Mortuary was established in 1959. The Mausoleum was purchased and became part of the property in 1971.^[1]

As was the custom in frontier days, early residents of Pasadena and the surrounding area buried their loved ones on family property. When family property began to be sold, including some land where Laura Giddings was buried, her father, landowner Levi W. Giddings and his son Joshua Reed Giddings established Mountain View Cemetery on a portion of the family's property adjacent to the Pasadena border. During 1883, 24 burials were moved to the newly established cemetery where they could remain forever.^[2][3] The earliest death found on a headstone at the cemetery is 1849.

The Mausoleum was designed by Cecil E. Bryan. It's focal point is its 180-foo-long Great Gallery featuring an ornate vaulted ceiling hand-painted by artist Martin Syvertsen. The massive mural, depicting the story of Christianity, took four years to complete. The Mausoleum also has stained glass windows created by Judson Studios, surfaces of more than 64 varieties of Italian marble, and intricate tile work.^[1]

Today Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum is still operated by the descendants of the Giddings family.^[2][1]

Notable Interments

Mountain View Cemetery contains many interments for local famous and historical figures, including:

• John Corneby Wilson Austin, architect who participated in the design of several landmark buildings in Southern California, including the Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles City Hall, and Shrine Auditorium.
• Octavia Estelle Butler, American science fiction author and multiple recipient of the Hugo and Nebula awards.
• Eldridge Cleaver, Black militant activist and Black Panther leader.
• Herbert W. Armstrong, religious leader and founder of the Worldwide Church of God and Ambassador College.
• Richard Feynman, Nobel Prize-winning physicist

• Nearly 800 Civil War Veterans - See Civil War Veteran overview and Table of Graves organized by surname - Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum - Civil War Veterans

More Information

• See the Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum category
• Mountain View Cemetery website
• Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum on FindAGrave

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Mountain View, https://www.mtn-view.com
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} "Second Annual Presentation of A Walk Through Time", 2006, Presented by: Pasadena Museum of History, Mountain View Cemetery & Mausoleum in cooperation with the Pasadena Playhouse. PDF at https://www.mtn-view.com/a-walk-through-time/
3. ↑ "About Mountain View", https://www.mtn-view.com/about-us/