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imnotsoho t1_iytmngy wrote

Some time after the 1906 earthquake all of the cemeteries were relocated to Colma - City of the Dead. Colma has about 6,000 live residents and 600,000 graves.

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the_slemsons_dreary t1_iyu1f3g wrote

Truly a great use of prime urban land

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super_delegate t1_iyumubh wrote

Cemeteries should be banned. The idea that a body takes land in perpetuity that could be a strip mall with a liquor store and a little Caesar’s instead is crazy.

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kinkomancer t1_iyv1nyl wrote

Litter Caesar's can have priority over the graveyard as soon as they stop cremating my fucking pepperoni pizza, my guy.

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squad1alum t1_iyvbny9 wrote

Would you settle for a joint venture? Little Caesars Pizza and Crematorium

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skram42 t1_iyv13uv wrote

I would much rather have a nice cemetery to walk through than another concrete strip mall.

Our cemetery is nice, but I have seen some that look crappy

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alphador75 t1_iyusqh1 wrote

I agree! I’d rather be cremated and the ashes mix in some soil for a tree/plant.

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delandaest t1_iyuxe0h wrote

To bad, it has been agreed you will be mixed in with concrete and turned into a strip mall

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imnotsoho t1_iyy4ce8 wrote

It was a long way away from the urban center when it was turned into cemeteries.

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the_slemsons_dreary t1_iyy9167 wrote

Not really, the Silicon Valley was a long way away but colma was close by, hence why they used it for cemeteries for the nearby city.

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Tranetime t1_iyuvl1b wrote

The deceased population in Colma was 600,000 about 40 years ago so it must be over a million know. Also, did you know that Wyatt Earp is buried in Holy Cross? Strange but true. So is Joe DiMaggio. People leave balls, bats and Yankees caps at his grave.

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Throwawayfabric247 t1_iyvyrit wrote

Also it's not city of the dead. It's the city of souls or Necropolis.

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imnotsoho t1_iyy433o wrote

At one time it was known as the City of the Silent. ~1.5 million dead, less than 1,507 living according to 2020 census.

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Duchesst t1_iyrvjh5 wrote

Reduce,reuse recycle

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HairballTheory t1_iyrtqb7 wrote

Just like my life, my memorial will end up in the gutter

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old_gold_mountain OP t1_iyrvzhk wrote

more context:

https://hoodline.com/2013/10/the-secret-tombstones-of-buena-vista-park/

pulled from this video about the history of San Francisco's streetcars

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jamin_g t1_iyvc8m8 wrote

Op lures us in with pictures then gives us lots of words to read. Despicable.

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plasticmotives t1_iyrydgo wrote

Goodness - looking at that photo I have a very vivid mental picture of walking back up a hill to a youth hostel back in the early 2000's.

No idea if it's the same place, but it's a solid match in my head. Fascinating - thank you!

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Head-like-a-carp t1_iytg8sq wrote

"Robert, I knew ye would end up in the gutter. You always were no damn good."

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k0uch t1_iytmzij wrote

Well that’s sad. Not the reusing of material, but that these people are long gone and forgotten

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Croatian_Hitman t1_iytnvbc wrote

it's nothing new. It's really a wonder that there's anything left of the ancient world at all, since stones have been taken from ancient ruins to build bridges, churches, and roads for as long as people have been building with stone to begin with. But it is a bit unusual to see that in more modern times, especially in cities like San Francisco.

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Grokker999 t1_iyuhsx3 wrote

In the 30 years I've lived here, I've also noticed that there's a lot less visible grave stones in Buena Vista Park then there used to be. It's a little weird for me to live here long enough for gravestones to further decay. It goes for the whole city really it is constantly changing. But it's a little bit incremental.

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Croatian_Hitman t1_iyujqbk wrote

It does make sense from a practicality point of view. The stones have already been cut and smoothed, and are not in the middle of nowhere as to making transporting them a hassle.

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Throwawayfabric247 t1_iyvyxvr wrote

Pale blue dot. The day you grasp it the day you realize life is too meaningless to worry about stuff that doesn't affect you.

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k0uch t1_iywx9y3 wrote

I feel like at the same time, for our local galactic neighborhood at least, it reaffirms how special and valuable our time here is… and it should be spent better

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Throwawayfabric247 t1_iyxgbv6 wrote

Absolutely, but that's a meaningful life to you. As you should live your life to the fullest. Because in the grand scheme. We are insignificant. But as a mass we are great.

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peeniebaby t1_iyulxc5 wrote

Couldn’t they have had the decency to turn the text side down?

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ParkieDude t1_iyvsm0u wrote

That was the plan, but occasionally the WPA workers didn't flip them upside down.

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ColumbaPacis t1_iyuufpx wrote

All these markers are likely from gravestones. Only a handful have text on them. Human error. And a bit of laziness probably.

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diablodeldragoon t1_iys1tiz wrote

I'd imagine they were messed up in some way during production.

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old_gold_mountain OP t1_iys2u16 wrote

San Francisco relocated large cemeteries from Western neighborhoods down to the city of Colma in the early 1900s. Living relatives of the deceased were given the opportunity to claim a gravestone and request its relocation, but the ones that went unclaimed were claimed by the city and used as construction materials.

More info here: https://hoodline.com/2013/10/the-secret-tombstones-of-buena-vista-park/

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MonsieurPurdue t1_iys4qyg wrote

So that’s why Colma is like 50% cemeteries! (The other 50% is car dealerships)

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rachelcp t1_iyt7b0v wrote

That's so messed up. Just because people don't know you specifically doesn't mean you don't deserve to be found and known by others.

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blazelet t1_iyt9hii wrote

I had the same thought. You only deserve to be memorialized if someone is there to claim you? It’s sad.

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pseudocultist t1_iytm1iy wrote

Been true for all of human existence tho, so it’s rather natural.

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imnotsoho t1_iytmu3k wrote

You are assuming they didn't get new markers. You would be wrong.

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rachelcp t1_iyttae6 wrote

Hopefully but it doesn't seem that way, do you have a source?

Just skimmed the article and they were talking about the reasoning being due to the gravesite being an unsightly waste of space, they also mentioned all those who didn't have loved ones being moved to mass graves.

I couldn't find any mention of replacing the headstones though I might have missed it but i doubt that anyone who would disrespect that many dead by moving them to a mass grave would also use the time and money to carve them brand new headstones.

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DLBaker t1_iyu3d5b wrote

They could have at least placed the markers face down.

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Anothereternity t1_iyuc5wg wrote

The linked article says they were supposed to be placed marking down but made some mistakes

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Anothereternity t1_iyuc8ra wrote

Edit: Oh I see you already saw the part about mass grave. My guess is if there’s a marker it’s one larger one with all the names?

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ColumbaPacis t1_iyuuc5z wrote

Some of these are so old, they probably couldn't tell what their names are or wrote down the wrong thing.

Does it really matter? A bunch of local graves old are almost two centuries old. Nobody remembers who any of them were.

The point of graves never made sense for me, at least for those who are not religious.

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username_05 t1_iytwaey wrote

Their names are being dragged through the gutters

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dcvalent t1_iyunr5d wrote

Remember, your “forever resting place” is usually only 30 years long

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ExternalOne4202 t1_iyurmbh wrote

100 years after you are dead, no one will remember you ever existed.

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ParkieDude t1_iyvs0qh wrote

My great grandfather (born in Galway, Ireland, in 1846, came to San Francisco as a child, resided as an adult on 51 Sanchez Street SF, and died in 1907.)

His job in San Francisco was as an undertaker. When business was slow, they made furniture, otherwise coffins.

His daughter, my Grandmother, was born in 1883 and lived in San Francisco. Oh, she had some great stories. Sharp as a tack until she passed away in 1971.

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helfrichi t1_iyv0fho wrote

Yes after a few generations there will be nobody alive that even knows your name. What’s my great great grandfathers name? Fuck if I know.

always makes me think of Percy Shelley’s ozymandias.

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Rux81 t1_iyu1hke wrote

My turn will come soon enough. Dust in the wind.

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Splixalpha t1_iyukvg9 wrote

I actually lived next to an old pioneer cemetery on the West Coast. They had piles of old broken gravestones back in the grounds keeping area. A couple hundred years of weather can break just about anything down.

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mykidsarecrazy t1_iyurdvx wrote

My cousin's house had head stones as stepping stones from the street to the door. They didn't know until they did some work and had to move one. They replaced them all. I forget where they had come from.

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sreek4r t1_iyuhdjq wrote

I bet there's an urban legend about the place being haunted.

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mouthdrummer t1_iyvis3e wrote

“You son of a bitch! You moved the cemetery, but you left the bodies, didn't you? You son of a bitch, you left the bodies and you only moved the headstones!”

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Murderyoga t1_iyrzdhr wrote

Pull up all gravestones and plant tomatoes.

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DanteDMC2001 t1_iyun83s wrote

Yup! It’s still not uncommon nowadays to see something like this.

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assassins-CWEED t1_iyuy3oc wrote

In Lehman Caves, FDR’s New Deal program broke stalactites/ stalagmites & used them as timber for wall support. Unfortunate prioritization.

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Kandiruaku t1_iyv36gv wrote

Back around New England 20 years ago I knew two guys who work the excavator at an old cemetery and a gravesite dealer, they reassured me I could count on being exhumed within 150 years if gravesite unattended for more than 50 years, such is human greed. Donating my cadaver to science, also makes for zero funeral expenses.

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GARBANSO97 t1_iyuilot wrote

Hellllll no! Thats bad juju

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Memnoch79 t1_iyunf6b wrote

That's what we call being Progressive in CA.

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LouisLima t1_iytr6vk wrote

Were there only gravestones used or are there people buried in the park? Is there any Urban legend in this park?

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NuttyMcCrunch t1_iyru56l wrote

It's most likely gravestones that we're messed up in the making process. Cant erase a mistake on stone.

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FUCKYOUINYOURFACE t1_iytk9nu wrote

A lot or these are gravestones with errors and so don’t get used as actual gravestones.

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