FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Neighbors, patrons, historians and interested citizens are invited to participate in a visioning process to develop a long-term plan for the future of Springfield’s historic Hazelwood Municipal Cemetery.
With the help of Drury University’s Hammons School of Architecture, this vision will be developed over a series of four public workshops, the first of which will be held 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 7 at the Schweitzer-Brentwood Branch Library Community Room (2214 S. Brentwood Blvd.). Drury students will research, explore, evaluate and prioritize a range of community values shared throughout the process and present recommendations for potential improvements to the cemetery at a final presentation planned for early May.
Proposed improvements could help Hazelwood keep up with changing industry trends, increase visibility and vehicle access, and improve Public Works facilities located on cemetery grounds.
About Hazelwood
Hazelwood Cemetery will mark its 150th anniversary in October. Located at 1642 E. Seminole in Springfield, it is maintained by Public Works’ Public Grounds division. It is the largest municipal cemetery in the state with 60 acres and over 44,000 grave spaces. The cemetery is still actively selling grave spaces.
Hazelwood is the final resting place of many notable Springfieldians including Springfield founder John Polk Campbell; Mayor, Congressman and Judge Sempronius (Pony) Boyd; and Route 66 visionary John T. Woodruff.
The cemetery was established in 1867. The 80 acres of land chosen for the new public cemetery was, at that time, located 2.5 miles outside of the Springfield city limits. Graves were relocated from the old municipal cemetery (near Campbell Avenue and State Street) and the North Springfield Cemetery (near Campbell Avenue and Atlantic Street). Ten acres at the northeast corner of Hazelwood were secured by the federal government for use as a national cemetery for Civil War soldiers.
Community Visioning Workshop Schedule:
All visioning meetings will take place at the Schweitzer-Brentwood Branch Library Community Room (2214 S. Brentwood Blvd.)
- 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 7
- 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28
- 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 11
- 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 9 – Final Presentation of Recommendations
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For more information, contact Communication Coordinator Kristen Milam at (573) 819-3713 or [email protected] or Public Grounds Operations Supervisor Joe Payne at (417) 864-1954 or [email protected].