Press Release from the Preservation Society of Asheville & Buncombe County:
On an autumn afternoon this October 15, take a walk through one of Asheville’s special places and see where time lies still. Join the Preservation Society in a self-guided tour of Riverside Cemetery, founded in 1885 and encompassing 87 landscaped acres that are beautiful, peaceful and beyond interesting.
Riverside Cemetery, in historic Montford and overlooking the French Broad River, is home to 9000 monuments, 12 mausoleums and thousands more graves. This walking tour covers personages of local and national renown: Thomas Wolfe, Zebulon Vance, O. Henry, Thomas Patton, Golden Age notables to persevering pioneers. Soldiers from the Civil War and both World Wars rest at Riverside, as do 18 German POWs. Docents will be standing by at various gravesites to share stories of these dearly and not-so-dearly departed.
Jeanne Warner, long-serving and dedicated PSABC board member, is organizing this walking tour. Warner has researched, planned and guided many local history tours and has a fascinating day planned. Joshua Darty, Riverside Cemetery superintendent, welcomes Preservation Society members and guests.
“Namesakes of some of Asheville’s best-known buildings and thoroughfares rest in peace in pastoral Riverside Cemetery, also an Asheville tree reserve,” says Kieta Osteen-Cochrane, Education Committee Chair. “For history buffs and nature lovers, this walking tour should be a fine day in a timeless place.”
The scheduled date for his walking tour is Saturday, October 15th, at 2 pm. Gather at the Riverside Cemetery office inside the grounds at 53 Birch Street in Montford. Wear walking shoes and be prepared for uneven ground and no available bathrooms. While admission is free, a suggested $10 donation supports local preservation. Generous sponsors include Terry and Ted Van Duyn and Clark Associates.
For more information visit: www.PSABC.org
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