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About the Friends of Mount Hope Cemetery
The Friends of Mount Hope Cemetery is a non-profit organization of volunteers founded in 1980 to restore, preserve, and encourage public use and enjoyment of this unique historical treasure. We have a wealth of resources available to help you learn about our community as reflected in the lives of those who chose Mount Hope Cemetery as their final resting place. Susan B. Anthony and her family, Frederick Douglass and family, Isaac and Amy Post, John Jacob Bausch and Henry Lomb (of Bausch and Lomb eyewear fame), Emily Sibley Watson, Margaret Woodbury Strong, and Reverend Thomas James are all here (to name a few), and they have much to tell us about the growing pains our nation continues to experience: issues of human rights, commerce, the power of government and the responsibility of the governed.

The Friends have been instrumental in completing a number of improvements throughout the cemetery.  Projects such as the restoration of the 1872 Moorish gazebo, upgrades to the 1874 High Victorian Gothic gatehouse, repair and uprighting of stones, monuments and obelisks, and the rebuilding of the cobblestone road (Ravine Avenue) have been completed.  Each year new historically important projects are organized.  

The Adopt-A-Plot program provides volunteers the opportunity to reclaim and beautify old family plots. The Gardening Committee maintains common gardens throughout the cemetery.

The tour program is one of the most well known activities of the Friends. Knowledgeable guides conduct regular tours free of charge on Saturday at 1 PM and Sunday afternoons at 2 PM and 2:30 PM from May to October. Many theme tours are offered throughout the tour season. Special tours are available for schools and other organizations.

We welcome new members. Membership entitles you to receive our quarterly newsletter - The Epitaph -with outstanding articles on cemetery history and news of the Friends. Members also receive free admission to our special theme tours. It is through annual membership fees, donations and the generous contributions of volunteers that we are able to support the many projects of the Friends.

A free pocket guide including a map of Mount Hope Cemetery is available at the cemetery office (1133 Mount Hope Avenue) and gatehouse (791 Mount Hope Avenue). The gatehouse, headquarters of the Friends, is open to the public when tours are scheduled.