All Souls Chapel

All Souls Chapel has become the centerpiece of Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. Its construction began in 1876 and was completed over a ten-year period. The Early English Gothic architecture features a steep slate roof and Medina stone from a local quarry. Highlights of the Chapel include a vaulted ceiling with large hand painted murals and a white and black Italian marble altar that was paid for with donations from parishioners of the Diocese. When Bishop McQuaid started the collection for the altar, he stipulated that each person could donate no more than 25 cents, therefore ensuring that everyone could be a part of this timeless gift.

Christ Our Light Mausoleum

Bishop Matthew H. Clark held the Mass of Dedication and Blessing for the stunning Christ Our Light Mausoleum on September 20, 2008. As the newest structure at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, the mausoleum features a central chapel, circular in shape and soaring two stories capped with arched wood beams and a floor to ceiling glass wall to emphasize natural light. It was designed to be a peaceful and calming resting place for loved ones, and for visitors to come for reflection and prayer.

Fall Season

With more than 100 varieties of trees on our property, fall is a particularly beautiful season at Holy Sepulchre. Rochester’s crisp fall weather means many trees’ leaves turn into an array of colors—burnt oranges & golden yellows mix with rusted browns and vibrant reds—before falling to the ground.

Garden of the Seuplchre

Built in 1993, The Garden of the Sepulchre was created as a focal point that reminds us of our Catholic beliefs, with the Pieta reflecting our faith in Christ’s death for our salvation. The mold used for the bronze statue was created using Michelangelo’s marble sculpture in St. Peter’s Cathedral at the Vatican. The hill and 3 crosses represent Golgotha, the hill near Jerusalem where Christ was crucified. The Garden of the Sepulchre also features a walkway around the perimeter marked with the 14 Stations of the Cross, and is a popular place for prayer, especially during Lent.

Bishop McQuaid's Legacy

Holy Sepulchre’s history is built upon Bishop McQuaid’s dedication to creating a “garden cemetery” where all of Rochester’s Catholics could be buried. The vision continues today, more than 135 years later, and now spanning more than 332 acres. This bronze statue of Bishop McQuaid was relocated from the former St. Bernard’s Seminary that was adjacent to Holy Sepulchre and part of what is now the St. Bernard’s burial section. It is located at the side of All Souls Chapel—the planning, design and construction of which Bishop McQuaid oversaw between 1876 and 1886.

Gravestones & Statues

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, hundreds of intricately carved gravestones were erected throughout Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. The most common designs feature Christ, His mother, Mary and angels. Throughout the 20th century, this level of design became much more costly, and a new trend of using crosses to distinguish gravestones became popular. More recently, gravestones are made of highly polished granite in varying shades of red, gray and black, and feature engravings of both images and epitaphs. The two statues featured in this photo are at the gravesites of two teenage girls who were interred in 1924.

Spring Season

Spring Season brings hundreds of flowering trees into bloom on our grounds. Featured varieties include many ornamental variants of fruit trees, including flowering crabapple trees and ornamental cherry & pear trees. Dozens of flowerbeds are planted and maintained by our talented landscape team, adding to the beauty of our garden cemetery.

Summer Season

Year-round plantings of both annuals and perennials ensure that we have flowers in bloom from spring through fall at Holy Sepulchre. Flowerbeds, shrubbery, flowering trees and personal plantings all add to the beauty of our 332 acres.

Veterans Sections

There are seven Veterans Sections at Holy Sepulchre. The oldest dates to 1873 and is known as the “Grand Army of the Republic” Section. Interred there are veterans of the Civil and Spanish-American wars. The newest Veterans’ Section is shown in the photo above, and was dedicated on May 30, 2009. The memorial structure is surrounded by about 1,000 graves and features a pentagon-shaped granite base with five cast bronze plaques that honor each of the five branches of the military. The inscription reads, “Because of them, we live in freedom.”

Winter Season

Holy Sepulchre takes on an even more serene look each winter when snow falls. With the last of the flowers and fall leaves gone, our evergreen trees are showcased alongside the snow. Thousands of graves are marked by winter wreaths throughout the season each year.