Laurel Hill Cemetery

Friends of Laurel Hill & West Laurel Hill Cemeteries

In 1978, Drayton and Jane Smith and John Francis Marion founded the Friends of Laurel Hill Cemetery, and in 2018, the Friends expanded to become the Friends of Laurel Hill & West Laurel Hill Cemeteries. The Friends is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and their mission is to assist the Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill Cemetery Companies in preserving and promoting the historical character of Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill Cemeteries. In addition to developing and implementing educational programs at the Cemeteries, the Friends produce special events, including Laurel Hill’s famous Halloween festivities, and offer both public and private tours of the sites, often in collaboration with local schools, nonprofit groups, and historical organizations.

The Friends focus their work in three areas:

1. Prepare, implement and promote educational programming, public outreach initiatives, and research resources that emphasize the historical, aesthetic, architectural and cultural significance of Laurel Hill & West Laurel Hill Cemeteries
2. Foster and support the restoration and preservation of the Cemeteries’ monuments, statuary, historic buildings, and grounds
3. Raise funds and seek contributed services to accomplish these goals