Green Burial

Green (or natural) burial emphasizes simplicity and environmental sustainability. The body is neither cremated nor prepared with chemicals such as embalming fluids. It is simply placed in a biodegradable coffin or shroud and interred without a concrete burial vault. The grave site is allowed to return to nature. The goal is complete decomposition of the body and it's natural return to the soil. Only then can a burial truly be "ashes to ashes, dust to dust, " a phrase so often used when we bury our dead. Read more...

Earth Burial: A Tradition in Simplicity

What is a "traditional" funeral? In early America, home funerals were the practice everywhere, and each community had a group of women who came in to help with the "laying out of the dead." Visitation was held in the front parlor followed by a procession to the church and cemetery. Read more...

Cemeteries

About one-third of the cemeteries in New York State are operated by not-for-profit corporations. The others are owned by religious and private organizations, families, local governments, and the federal government. Read more...