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24-664: The Vanderbilt Family Cemetery and Mausoleum is a private burial site adjacent to the Moravian Cemetery in the New Dorp neighborhood of Staten Island , New York City . It was designed by Richard Morris Hunt and Frederick Law Olmsted in the late 19th century, when the Vanderbilt family was the wealthiest in America. The Vanderbilt Family Cemetery and Mausoleum is on the eastern slope of Todt Hill , adjacent to

48-457: A further 4 acres (1.6 ha) and constructed the residence for the cemetery's superintendent. The Vanderbilt Mausoleum was designed by Richard Morris Hunt and constructed in 1885–1886. It is part of the family's privately owned cemetery, which is not open to the public. The Vanderbilt Mausoleum is a replica of a Romanesque church in Arles , France. The Vanderbilt family cemetery's landscaping

72-530: A single boat, he grew his fleet until he was competing with Robert Fulton for dominance of the New York waterways, his energy and eagerness earning him the nickname "Commodore", a United States Navy title for a captain of a small task force. Fulton's company had established a monopoly on trade in and out of New York Harbor . Vanderbilt, based in New Jersey at the time, flouted the law, steaming in and out of

96-518: Is part of the family's private cemetery adjacent to Moravian cemetery. Hunt's design was inspired by the 12th-century Romanesque Saint-Gilles-du-Gard Abbey near Arles , France . The landscaped grounds around the mausoleum were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The Vanderbilt section is not open to the public. Interment within the mausoleum was reserved to those with the Vanderbilt name, including sons, their wives, and unmarried daughters. It houses

120-571: Is the largest house in the United States . While some of Cornelius Vanderbilt's descendants gained fame in business, others achieved prominence in other ways: In 1855, Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt donated 45 acres (18 ha) of property to the Moravian Church and Cemetery at New Dorp on Staten Island , New York. Later, his son William Henry Vanderbilt donated a further 4 acres (1.6 ha). The Vanderbilt Family Mausoleum

144-553: Is the majority of the Moravian Cemetery and the site of the private Vanderbilt plot. Later, his son William Henry Vanderbilt gave a further 4 acres (1.6 ha) and constructed the residence for the cemetery superintendent. William commissioned the family mausoleum, and was the richest person in America when he died in December 1885. The Vanderbilt mausoleum, designed by Richard Morris Hunt and constructed in 1885–1886,

168-497: The Moravian Church to his death. The Vanderbilt family lived on Staten Island until the mid-1800s, when the Commodore built a house on Washington Place (in what is now Greenwich Village ). Although he always occupied a relatively modest home, members of his family would use their wealth to build magnificent mansions . Shortly before his death in 1877, Vanderbilt donated US$ 1 million (equivalent to $ 29 million in 2023) for

192-592: The Second Battle of Fort Wagner , was erected here by his family. The Moravian Cemetery is the burial place for a number of famous Staten Islanders, including members of the Vanderbilt family . The director Martin Scorsese also has a burial plot here. In the 19th century, Cornelius Vanderbilt gave the Moravian Church 45 acres (18 ha) of land. Later, his son William Henry Vanderbilt gave

216-586: The "Fall of the House of Vanderbilt". Branches of the family are found on the United States East Coast . Contemporary descendants include American art historian John Wilmerding , journalist Anderson Cooper (son of Gloria Vanderbilt ), actor Timothy Olyphant , musician John P. Hammond , screenwriter James Vanderbilt , and the Duke of Marlborough James Spencer-Churchill . The progenitor of

240-604: The English took control of New Amsterdam (now Manhattan ). The family is associated with the Dutch patrician Van der Bilt. His great-great-great-grandson, Cornelius Vanderbilt , began the rise of the Vanderbilt dynasty. He was the fourth of nine children born into a Staten Island family of modest means. Through his paternal great-great grandmother, Abigail Southard, he descends from Republic of Salé President Jan Janszoon and his son Anthony Janszoon van Salee . They were among

264-501: The Moravian Cemetery is the largest and oldest active cemetery on Staten Island, having opened in 1740. The cemetery encompasses 113 acres (46 hectares) and is the property of the local Moravian Church congregation of Staten Island. To the cemetery's southwest is High Rock Park, one of the constituent parks of the Staten Island Greenbelt . In what was a purely farming community, the 113-acre (46 ha) cemetery

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288-498: The Moravian Cemetery located at 2205 Richmond Road . The cemetery opened in 1740 and is the largest and oldest active cemetery on Staten Island. Todt Hill is the highest natural point on the Eastern Seaboard between Cape Cod and Florida, rising to 410 feet (120 m). In 1865, Cornelius Vanderbilt gave the Moravian Church 8.5 acres (3.4 ha). Three years later, he donated an additional 45 acres (18 ha), which

312-537: The Vanderbilt family was Jan Aertszoon or Aertson (1620–1705), a Dutch farmer from the village of De Bilt in Utrecht , Netherlands , who emigrated to the Dutch colony of New Netherland as an indentured servant to the Van Kouwenhoven family in 1650. The name of Jan's village, in the genitive case , was added to the Dutch " van " ("from") to create " Van der Bilt ", which evolved into "Vanderbilt" when

336-575: The Vanderbilt fortune. He built the first of what would become many grand Vanderbilt mansions on Fifth Avenue , at 640 Fifth Avenue. William Henry appointed his first son, Cornelius Vanderbilt II , as the next "Head of House". Cornelius II built the largest private home in New York, at 1 West 57th Street , containing approximately 154 rooms, designed by George B. Post . He also built The Breakers in Newport , Rhode Island. Cornelius II's brother, William Kissam Vanderbilt , also featured prominently in

360-479: The earliest arrivals to 17th-century New Amsterdam . In a number of documents dating back to that period, Anthony is described as tawny, as his mother was of Berber origin from Cartagena in the Kingdom of Murcia . Cornelius Vanderbilt left school at age 11 and went on to build a shipping and railroad empire that, during the 19th century, would make him one of the wealthiest men in the world. Starting with

384-408: The early 1900s. Catholic mafia families who had been refused a Catholic burial were offered burials in this cemetery. In the novel It's Superman: A Novel , the mother of the character Lex Luthor is buried in the Moravian Cemetery. 40°34′48″N 74°7′00″W  /  40.58000°N 74.11667°W  / 40.58000; -74.11667 Vanderbilt family The Vanderbilts were once

408-537: The establishment of Vanderbilt University in Nashville . The Commodore left the majority of his enormous fortune to his eldest son, William Henry Vanderbilt . William Henry, who outlived his father by just eight years, increased the profitability of his father's holdings, increased the reach of the New York Central Railroad , and doubled the Vanderbilt wealth. He was the only heir to increase

432-807: The family's affairs. He also built a home on Fifth Avenue and would become one of the great architectural patrons of the Gilded Age , hiring the architects for (the third, and surviving) Grand Central Terminal . He also built Marble House at 596 Bellevue Avenue in Newport, Rhode Island. George Washington Vanderbilt II , the 3rd and youngest son of William Henry Vanderbilt and youngest brother of Cornelius II, hired architect Richard Morris Hunt and landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted to construct Biltmore Estate on 125,000 acres (51,000 ha) near Asheville , North Carolina. The 250 room mansion, with 175,856 sq ft (16,337.6 m ) of floor space,

456-548: The harbor under a flag that read, "New Jersey Must Be Free!" He also hired the attorney Daniel Webster to argue his case before the United States Supreme Court ; Vanderbilt won, thereby establishing an early precedent for the United States' first laws of interstate commerce . While many Vanderbilt family members had joined the Episcopal Church , Cornelius Vanderbilt remained a member of

480-501: The remains of all four of William and Maria's sons and three of their wives. The mausoleum was made a New York City designated landmark in 2016. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission 's chair said at the time: "The Vanderbilt Mausoleum is an extraordinary monument to America's Gilded Age." In June 2021, the mausoleum was nominated for inclusion on the New York State and National Register of Historic Places . It

504-476: The wealthiest family in the United States. Cornelius Vanderbilt was the richest American until his death in 1877. After that, his son William Henry Vanderbilt acquired his father's fortune, and was the richest American until his death in 1885. The Vanderbilts' prominence lasted until the mid-20th century, when the family's 10 great Fifth Avenue mansions were torn down, and most other Vanderbilt houses were sold or turned into museums in what has been referred to as

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528-548: Was added to the NRHP on July 30, 2021. The nonprofit Vanderbilt Cemetery Association was created in 2010 by members of the Vanderbilt family to help preserve and protect the property. Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt III is chairman. Notable burials in the Vanderbilt family's private section within the cemetery include: Moravian Cemetery The Moravian Cemetery is a cemetery in the New Dorp neighborhood of Staten Island , New York, United States. Located at 2205 Richmond Road,

552-476: Was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted . The Vanderbilt Mausoleum and portions of the cemetery were designated a New York City designated landmark in 2016. The cemetery is the burial place of many Italian-American Catholics, even though it is a Protestant cemetery. This is due to the efforts of Father Ettore Barletta, who was in charge of the Italian Mission congregation at the nearby Moravian Church in

576-619: Was originally made available as a free cemetery for the public in order to discourage families from using farm burial plots. After the closure in the 1880s of the South Reformed Dutch Church in Richmondtown , the graves of that church's graveyard were reinterred at Moravian. A monument to Robert Gould Shaw , a Union soldier who led the first all- black regiment in the American Civil War and died in

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