Riverside Cemetery Tour

The Oswego County Historical Society, along with the Friends of Riverside Cemetery, will host a guided tour of the historic Riverside Cemetery. Due to limited space, please pre-register by contacting the museum. The cemetery tour will begin at the Page Memorial Chapel at the main entrance of the cemetery.

Pictured is an interior view of the Page Memorial Chapel, built in 1906 by the family of Alanson and Elsie (Benson) Page in their memory. The chapel is famed for its Tiffany stained glass windows and memorial tablets.

The Riverside Cemetery was incorporated in 1855 and is situated just outside the Oswego city line. It was designed as a rural cemetery by landscape architect Burton Arnold Thomas. In the mid-19th century, rural cemeteries became a popular choice for a final resting place in a park-like setting on the outskirts of town, running counter to earlier condensed cemeteries that frequently ran out of space in growing neighborhoods. Sometimes referred to as a ‘garden style,’ rural cemeteries were seen as places to visit and enjoy the landscape along with the artistry of the monuments.