| Additional Information: | 2012- Pine Grove traces its beginnings to the late 1850s with the formation of teh Wausau Cemetery Association, and the purchase of 40 acres for the cemetery's establishments. Initially known as the Wausau Cemetery it was renames in 1904, following the planting of over 500 white pines by landscape architect Neil Brown. That year, O.C. Simonds, a Chicago landscape architect may have also designed improvements at the cemetery in 1911, including cement walk, parkways, and gardens. the mausoleum was designed by Wausau architect Anthony Parsons and built by F.H. Sievert, a contractor from Bloomville, OH.
2018 survey report write-up: Pine Grove Cemetery includes two primary structures; a stone-constructed, Gothic Revival-style, towered entrance near Grand Avenue and an Egyptian Revival-style mausoleum at the rear (east end) of the property. Regarding the former, it is constructed of randomly laid granite with thick mortar joints and trimmed with cut stone. A pair of crenelated towers, one larger than the other, frames the driveway, over which is an archway. The larger tower (to the north) includes a Gothic-arch opening that leads to the cemetery office space that is topped with a hipped roof and includes diamond-paned windows; a short wall extends further to the north. Cut stone tracery is located along the upper level of the buttressed tower. Extending from the shorter tower on the south is another small, hipped-roof room (this one use for storage); likewise, a short wall extends to the south. Measuring 100 feet by 60 feet, the mausoleum is constructed of reinforced concrete, rises from a granite base/foundation and is faced with Bedford stone. The building consists of a large, rectangular, flat-roofed block with a cavetto cornice from which extends a lower, modestly pitched gabled wing that is flanked by one-story side aisles; the latter elements of which are covered with red tile. The double-door entrance is sheltered by an open porch with lotus columns that rest on granite bases. Corners of the rectangular section are accented with battered buttressing. The 1912 cornerstone includes the names of the two men who built the structure: Herman G. Flieth and Roman G. Deutsch. In addition to the mausoleum and towered entry, the grounds include winding pathways, as well as a good number of individual family crypts, many of which are associated with such prominent Wausau family names as the Yawkey, Alexander and Ross.
Pine Grove Cemetery was established as the Wausau Cemetery by the Wausau Cemetery Association in 1859, following its purchase of forty acres that were, at that time, located beyond the city limits. Improvements were made in 1903, with the planting of over 500 white pine trees. That prompted the Association to rename the cemetery in 1904 as Pine Grove Cemetery. In 1911, Chicago landscape architect O.C. Simonds came to Wausau to consult with the cemetery association regarding potential improvements, including placement of the proposed entrance archway/gate which was built in 1912 at a cost of $5,000 (from funds raised by the Ladies’ Literary Society). It is unclear, however, as to the extent to which Simonds was involved with the improvements (pathways, landscaping, etc.). That same year, the Egyptian Revival-style mausoleum, designed by Wausau architect Anthony Parsons, was under construction; the contractor was F.H. Sievert of Bloomville, Ohio. Work on the mausoleum was noted as progressing rapidly as of May 1912 and that the interior was being fitted for its Vermont marble finish. Completion and dedication was held in October 1912. The structure was cited as able to accommodate 350 bodies. Dedication speakers included A.L. Kreutzer and J.L. Sturtevant, the latter of whom discussed the origins of the mausoleum for burial. In the 1990s, monies were raised to refurbish the entrance arch and, in 1997, the cemetery office was moved into the arch. |
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| Bibliographic References: | “Architecture/History Survey: Reconstruct USH/Bus. 51 (Grand Ave.): Kent St. To Division St.” WHS project number 12-0992/MR. June 2012. Prepared by Rachel E. Bankowitz.
citations for 2018 report information below: “For the Dead,” unidentified newspaper clipping hand-dated 6 June 1911, in Pine Grove Cemetery file, Marathon County Historical Society Research Library (MCHSRL); Kathy Jansen, comp., “Pine Grove Cemetery, Wisconsin” [Newspaper accounts of the growth and expansion of Wausau’s oldest cemetery and the construction and dedication of the entrance arch and Pine Grove Mausoleum], 1994, Pine Grove Cemetery files, MCHSRL; “Burial Will Soon Be Made In Crypts Instead of Graves Fashioned in Earth,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 25 April 1910, 6/3-5; “To Beautify Pine Grove Cemetery,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 20 October 1911, 3/1; “Soon to be Finished,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 21 May 1912, 3/2; “Dedication of the Mausoleum,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 19 October 1912, 1/4, includes photo; Dedication Program for the Pine Grove Mausoleum (12 October 1912), Pine Grove Cemetery files; “Dedication of the Mausoleum,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 21 October 1912, 1/1, 3/1-3; “Time, Vandals Take Their Toll,” Wausau Daily Herald, 23 May 1994; “Voices from the Past: A Discovery Walk Through Pine Grove Cemetery,” Booklet prepared by the Marathon County Historical Society for the event held on 26 September 2004, On file at the MCHSRL. |
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