Hidden Cemeteries in Astoria, Queens, NYC

Two tiny, forgotten cemeteries sit near each other in old Astoria: one was a burying ground for the wealthy families who ran the town, and the other was for Irish immigrants who fled the famine.

Here’s a look at the history behind the graveyards, as well as a puzzling mystery about a nearby churchyard that may or may not be a burial site.

Highlights include:
• Robbers hiding their loot in a church tower
• The mystery of a man with two graves
• The discovery of human remains during a construction project

Follow the podcast on instagram @buriedsecretspodcast

E-mail the podcast at buriedsecretspodcast@gmail.com.

Pictures of hidden cemeteries in Astoria

St. George’s Church Cemetery

The Irish Famine Cemetery

Sources consulted RE: cemeteries in Astoria

Books

The Graveyard Shift: A Family Historian’s Guide to New York City Cemeteries by Carolee Inskeep
Munsell’s History of Queens County, New York, 1882
The annals of Newtown, in Queens County, New York
by James Riker, 1852
History of Long Island City, New York. by J. SKelsey; Long Island Star Publishing Company, 1896
Queens Borough, New York City, 1910-1920 by Chamber of Commerce, 1920

Articles

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York) · Sun, Feb 19, 1899 · Page 11
Ancestry.com. 1870 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Year: 1870; Census Place: Astoria, Queens, New York; Roll: M593_1080; Page: 201A; Family History Library Film: 552579
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Sat, May 7, 1904 · Page 11 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/555908491
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Fri, Jun 17, 1887 · Page 1 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/556863449
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Sat, Jun 21, 1902 · Page 4 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/555932624
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Wed, Dec 28, 1887 · Page 1 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/556996064
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York) · Sun, Apr 9, 1899 · Page 10 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/50420388
The Sun (New York, New York) · Sun, Feb 19, 1899 · Page 4 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/79105618
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Mon, Nov 10, 1902 · Page 9 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/555907855
Brooklyn Evening Star (Brooklyn, New York) · Wed, Aug 13, 1862 · Page 3 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/118125760
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Thu, Oct 15, 1903 · Page 11 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/555909576
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York) · Fri, Oct 5, 1900 · Page 8 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/50360004
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Mon, Dec 5, 1887 · Page 1 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/556995547
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Thu, Jan 29, 1891 · Page 5 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/557824177
New York Daily Herald (New York, New York) · Sat, Feb 21, 1863 · Page 5 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/329273622
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Sat, Dec 26, 1903 · Page 14 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/555934521
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York) · Fri, Apr 15, 1910 · Page 6 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/58335087
Brooklyn Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) · Mon, Jul 25, 1887 · Page 1 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/556992361
Historical Archaeology of Religious Sites and Cemeteries
Author(s): Richard F. Veit, Sherene B. Baugher and Gerard P. Scharfenberger Source: Historical Archaeology , 2009, Vol. 43, No. 1, Historical Archaeology of Religious
Sites and Cemeteries (2009), pp. 1-11 Published by: Springer Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/25617539
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, New York) · Tue, Jan 11, 1910 · Page 8 https://newscomwc.newspapers.com/image/55520065

Websites

https://www.brownstoner.com/history/st-george-church-astoria-village/
https://forgotten-ny.com/2020/03/van-alst-avenue-long-island-city/
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/irish-famine-cemetery
https://sorabji.com/cemeteries/index/category/119-the_graveyard_of_our_lady_of_mt_carmel_church_famine_cemetery_astoria
https://sites.rootsweb.com/~nyqueen2/cemeteries/
https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/1981308/our-lady-of-mount-carmel-catholic-cemetery
http://www.nycago.org/Organs/Qns/html/OurLadyMtCarmel.html
https://www.brownstoner.com/architecture/st-george-church-astoria-village/amp/
https://www.archives.nyc/blog/2018/7/20/for-lo-these-many-years-forgotten-cemeteries-of-queens
http://longislandgenealogy.com/QueensCem.pdf
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/141870056/cornelius-rapelye-trafford
https://www.macaulay.cuny.edu/seminars/rosenberg09/articles/t/h/e/The_Film_Industry_in_Astoria_9fd9.html
https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?locations=Astoria%20Studios,%20Astoria,%20Queens,%20New%20York%20City,%20New%20York,%20USA
https://qns.com/2020/10/spider-man-comes-home-as-filming-begins-in-astoria/
https://www.movie-locations.com/movies/s/Spider-Man-Homecoming.php
https://forgotten-ny.com/1999/05/astoria-village-part-1-queens/
http://www.preserve.org/gahs/histlic.htm
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g29837-d13998743-r574218462-St_George_s_Episcopal_Church_of_Astoria-Astoria_Queens_New_York.html
https://www.historic-stgeorge-astoria.org/index.php/history
http://www.interment.net/data/us/ny/queens/first-presbyterian-church-newtown.htm
https://stmary-lic.org/
https://www.brownstoner.com/history/queenswalk-st-marys-roman-catholic-church-in-hunters-point/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roosevelt_Island_Bridge
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravenswood_Generating_Station
https://rihs.us/2020/11/12/thursday-november-12-2020-lets-explain-what-is-happening-in-ravenswood/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astoria,_Queens#Ravenswood
https://gothamist.com/news/the-push-to-turn-nycs-polluting-peaker-plants-into-publicly-owned-solar-power
https://www.mountcarmelastoria.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2&Itemid=7
https://www.mountcarmelastoria.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31&Itemid=35
http://www.pefagan.com/gen/queens/qmp_hal1840.htm
https://sorabji.com/cemeteries/index/category/119-the_graveyard_of_our_lady_of_mt_carmel_church_famine_cemetery_astoria
http://www.pefagan.com/gen/astoria/mtcarm/mtcminsc.htm
https://newtownpentacle.com/2021/02/26/neglected-orchard/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PS_General_Slocum
https://forgotten-ny.com/2016/05/irish-famine-cemetery-astoria-village/
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/irish-famine-cemetery
https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/1981308/our-lady-of-mount-carmel-catholic-cemetery