Cemetery

Welcome

Directions

About Us

Church Staff

Presbyterian Church (USA)

The historic heritage of our cemetery is accentuated by the serene, wooded setting of gentle hills and a stream. In continuous use since 1811, the ten-acre preserve currently serves as the final resting-place for more than 1300 people. The oldest gravesites are located to the east of the sanctuary near the edge of the property. Later sections to be used moved back, then across behind the church and gradually further to the north. Even today, sites are available near the stream and in the areas overlooking it and continuing up the hill. The large section at the top of the rise and the sizable section beyond will provide peaceful final resting-places for many years to come.

Copies of our Rules and Regulations as well as a current list of grave and burial costs are included for your information.

Should you have questions concerning purchasing a gravesite or if you need to make burial arrangements, please contact the Church Office at (215) 862-2440, the Cemetery Superintendent or the Chairman of the Cemetery Committee at cemetery@tmpc.org.

Cemetery Rules

The Thompson Memorial Cemetery is a perpetual care cemetery operating under the auspices of the Session of the Thompson Memorial Presbyterian Church, New Hope, Pennsylvania. This is a non-profit institution operated by volunteer members of the Thompson Memorial Presbyterian Church in accordance with the Church Bylaws which state that “All funds designated for the Cemetery shall be held separate and apart from other funds of the Church and shall be used exclusively for the operation of the Cemetery.”

The following rules and regulations are intended to serve as guidelines that will help assure and sustain an appropriately tranquil and reverent environment for the interred remains of deceased members and friends of the church congregation. Appropriate additions, changes or exceptions to these rules may be made by application to and with the approval of the Cemetery Committee.

Hours

The Cemetery grounds shall be open from dawn until dusk. The Cemetery is private property. Unauthorized persons trespassing the Cemetery after dusk shall be liable to prosecution. Picnicking, partying, and activities that are disruptive to the peaceful atmosphere or mar the appearance of the Cemetery are not permitted.

Care and Maintenance

In offering graves for sale, the Cemetery Committee will provide as a part of the price of the grave, a ‘Perpetual Care” program which shall include mowing, trimming and cleaning of the grave site. Repairs or replacement of grave stones which have become damaged, broken, displaced or lost due to natural causes, vandalism, etc. shall be the responsibility of the owner of the grave site but may be handled by other authorized concerned parties if the owner of the grave site is unavailable.

Sale of gravesites

Prices of gravesites are set by the Cemetery Committee and approved by the Session of Thompson Memorial Presbyterian Church. A listing of current prices for graves and services is available on request. All graves are sold at the prevailing price at the time the grave is sold. A gravesite must be fully paid for before burial will be permitted. Adjacent gravesite or sites that have been reserved but not paid for, will be held off the market for a period of 30 days after agreement to buy. After the passage of 30 days, any sites for which payment has not been received will be made available for sale at the prevailing rate at the discretion of the Cemetery Committee. The sale of more than four graves to a family unit must be approved by the Cemetery Committee. A deed of ownership will be issued to the buyer shortly after the sale of the grave(s).

Multiple Burials in a single grave

Multiple burials in a single grave may be permitted as follows:

Burials of caskets (outer vault or liner required): One per gravesite. We are not able to bury two deep due to the nature of our sub-soil.

Cremation urns: Up to four allowed in a single grave site.

Combinations: For graves already holding one casket (in its outer vault or liner), three additional cremation urns may be added or one infant or stillborn casket.

Corner Posts

In order to identify the location of gravesites, initialed granite corner posts bearing a single letter (usually the buyer’s initial) will be set flush with ground level (to facilitate mowing). Corner posts are installed by the Cemetery staff and must be purchased and paid for at the time of purchase of the gravesite or sites. Prices are listed in the current price schedule. The number of cornerstones required is dependent upon the number of graves purchased as follows:

Corner post requirement:

1, 2 or 3 graves will have two corner posts, to be placed at the head and foot of the grave nearest to the edge of the gravesite. Corner posts in Sections D and E are placed on the side of the grave nearest to the church sanctuary.

1 or 2 lots of four graves each, or rows of 5, 6, or 7 gravesites in rectangular alignment will have 4 corner posts to be placed at the outside corners of the purchased grave sites.

Resale or Refunds of unused gravesites

The owner of an unused grave site may transfer, but may not resell the site to another person or persons. Therefore, proof of ownership must be established before burial is permitted. The owner of an unused gravesite may apply to the Cemetery Committee to return the deed and ownership of the property to the Cemetery for a refund and the Committee will refund a sum not to exceed the original price paid for the grave. No refunds are made for corner stones already set in place.

Burials

Arrangements for opening of graves should be made through your funeral director, who should promptly contact the Cemetery Superintendent or Chairman. If unable to speak directly with one of them, call the Church Office (215-862-2440).

Headstones, Markers, Memorials, etc.

All markers, stones, signs, etc. and their foundations must be approved by the Cemetery Superintendent prior to installation. No exceptions may be made to this rule. Permanent plantings, fences, benches, seats, planters, raised foot stones or other potential obstructions to normal maintenance of the Cemetery are not permitted. To facilitate efficient maintenance, placement of headstones shall be in alignment with existing headstones. The Cemetery Committee reserves the right to specify exact locations of stones. The Cemetery Committee recognizes the historic significance of each burial and desires that grave markers be securely placed in order to assure maximum longevity of installation. Accordingly, foundations must be of the composition, size and depth into the ground specified by the Cemetery Committee, and shall be installed only by the Cemetery staff. Inadequate foundations may be subject to damage by winter frost and heaving, which in years to come, may lead to tipped and often broken grave stones. Such damage may cause undue expense to the Cemetery or lost identification of the grave. Please contact the Cemetery superintendent for further detailed information.

Grave Stone Foundations

The Cemetery reserves the right to delay pouring of concrete foundations for grave stones and markers until a number of foundations can be laid at one time. It is not economically practical to bring concrete and concrete finishing craftsmen to the cemetery for a single pouring. The costs of placing foundations for gravestones will vary according to the size and shape of the stone. The Cemetery Superintendent will supply this information to the company making the stone.

Plantings

No trees, bushes or permanent shrubbery may be planted on the gravesite. Flowers and floral arrangements left at the grave shall be removed by the Cemetery maintenance staff within a reasonable period of time and before the next holiday, in order to preserve the appearance of the grounds. The Cemetery Committee discourages garden types of grave plantings and will only permit them if they are properly maintained by the owner of the grave site and then, only if the planting does not interfere with the orderly maintenance of the area. No gravel, loose stones, grave covers, and no metal, plastic, wood or other substantial edgings will be permitted since these materials may interfere with the routine maintenance of the area. “Eternal” lights, candles, lamps, flower pots, and other additions are considered to be temporary memorials and will be removed if and when they obstruct or interfere with orderly maintenance, or if they become dangerous or unsightly in appearance. Special decorations on shrubbery are only allowed with the permission of the Cemetery Committee, and must be removed within an agreed upon time by the person or persons who placed them.

Records of Grave Sites and Burials

The Cemetery Committee will issue a deed for the gravesite(s) to the buyers and will make and retain permanent records of ownership of the site(s) and burials therein.