History

World's Greatest Cemeteries

World's Greatest Cemeteries highlights hidden gems using actors, forensic scientists, historians and even horticulturists to share true stories of romance, war, espionage and intrigue. Each episode includes a thoughtful visual exploration of one of the world's greatest cemeteries, along with dramatized re-enactments of pivotal moments in the life of a historical individual buried at the site.

Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, NY

26m 46s

Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty and tour a National Historic Landmark. New York’s Woodlawn Cemetery is the final resting place of legends — Duke Ellington, Herman Melville, Bat Masterson, Celia Cruz, Dorothy Parker, Miles Davis, Jokichi Takamine and Irving Berlin. Gilded age monuments, towering mausoleums, modern sculptures and exquisite landscaping grace this tree-lined urban oasis.

Episodes

  • Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, NY: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, NY

    S2 E206 - 26m 46s

    Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty and tour a National Historic Landmark. New York’s Woodlawn Cemetery is the final resting place of legends — Duke Ellington, Herman Melville, Bat Masterson, Celia Cruz, Dorothy Parker, Miles Davis, Jokichi Takamine and Irving Berlin. Gilded age monuments, towering mausoleums, modern sculptures and exquisite landscaping grace this tree-lined urban oasis.

  • Laurel Hill Cemetery: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Laurel Hill Cemetery

    S2 E205 - 26m 46s

    Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty at historic Laurel Hill and bucolic West Laurel Hill cemeteries near Philadelphia. Laurel Hill is America’s second major rural garden cemetery, on bluffs overlooking the scenic Schuylkill River. We explore the famed Medallion Garden. Interments include jazz saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr., Civil War General George Meade, and inventor Martha Coston.

  • St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans

    S2 E204 - 26m 46s

    Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty at legendary St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, in New Orleans! The town, known for mardi gras, jazz and great cuisine, is home to this Catholic cemetery with multicultural roots. We learn about Asian immigration, and tombs include the “witch” Madame Marie Laveau; civil rights activist Homer Plessy; Chess master Paul Morphy, and a mysterious pyramid for actor Nicolas Cage.

  • Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati.: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati.

    S2 E203 - 26m 46s

    Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty at Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati. A reenactor portrays Civil War Medal of Honor winner David Urbanski. We learn the story of food manufacturer Rabbi Dov Behr Manischewitz, and interpret traditional Jewish funerary iconography. Includes a look at 19th century immigration from Germany, three branches of Judaism, and a modern connection to Spain in 1492.

  • Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, MA: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, MA

    S2 E202 - 26m 46s

    Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty at this must-see for book lovers and history buffs! Concord’s Sleepy Hollow Cemetery boasts “Author’s Ridge” — with Louisa May Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson and more! Also, a side trip to Walden Pond, historical reenactments, and a surprise for “I Love Lucy” fans. This gem is on the US National Register of Historic Places.

  • Cave Hill Cemetery: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Cave Hill Cemetery

    S2 E201 - 26m 46s

    Join Host/Producer Roberto Mighty at beautiful Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville, KY — a 300-acre arboretum, birding space, gardening gem and historic burial ground. Interments include boxer and humanitarian Muhammad Ali, Colonel Harland Sanders, Suffragist Susan Look Avery and Revolutionary War hero George Rogers Clark. A reenactor portrays Sculptor Enid Yandell, and we view exquisite monuments.

Schedule

  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Cave Hill Cemetery

    Thursday
    Oct 31

    30 Minutes

    Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville, Ky., a 300 acre arboretum, birding space and historic burial ground, is the resting place for Muhammad Ali, Col. Harland Sanders, suffragist Susan Look Avery and Revolutionary War officer George Rogers Clark.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, MA

    Thursday
    Oct 31

    30 Minutes

    Concord's Sleepy Hollow Cemetery boasts "Author's Ridge," with Louisa May Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson and more; side trip to Walden Pond, historical reenactments and a surprise for "I Love Lucy" fans.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati

    Thursday
    Oct 31

    30 Minutes

    Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati; a reenactor portrays Civil War Medal of Honor winner David Urbanski; Dov Behr Manischewitz; traditional Jewish funerary iconography; a look at 19th-century immigration from Germany.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans

    Thursday
    Oct 31

    30 Minutes

    St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 in New Orleans, a Catholic cemetery with multicultural roots; Asian immigration; tombs include Madame Marie Laveau, activist Homer Plessy, chess master Paul Morphy and a mysterious pyramid for actor Nicolas Cage.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Laurel Hill Cemetery

    Thursday
    Oct 31

    30 Minutes

    Exploring West Laurel Hill Cemetery near Philadelphia, including Medallion Garden; interments include jazz saxophonist Grover Washington Jr., Civil War Gen. George Meade and inventor Martha Coston.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, NY

    Thursday
    Oct 31

    30 Minutes

    Touring New York's Woodlawn Cemetery, the final resting place of Duke Ellington, Herman Melville, Bat Masterson, Celia Cruz, Dorothy Parker, Miles Davis, Jokichi Takamine and Irving Berlin.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, MA

    Sunday
    Nov 3

    30 Minutes

    Concord's Sleepy Hollow Cemetery boasts "Author's Ridge," with Louisa May Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson and more; side trip to Walden Pond, historical reenactments and a surprise for "I Love Lucy" fans.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati

    Sunday
    Nov 10

    30 Minutes

    Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati; a reenactor portrays Civil War Medal of Honor winner David Urbanski; Dov Behr Manischewitz; traditional Jewish funerary iconography; a look at 19th-century immigration from Germany.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Thursday
    Nov 14

    30 Minutes

    Visual explorations of the world's greatest cemeteries.
  • Image
    World's Greatest Cemeteries: TVSS: Iconic

    World's Greatest Cemeteries

    Thursday
    Nov 14

    30 Minutes

    Visual explorations of the world's greatest cemeteries.

WETA Passport

Stream tens of thousands of hours of your PBS and local favorites with WETA Passport whenever and wherever you want. Catch up on a single episode or binge-watch full seasons before they air on TV.

Similar Shows