On Open House New York weekend (when I visited the Green-Wood mausoleums and the Salmagundi Club), we also stumbled upon a late night event at Grant’s Tomb. It was one of those completely serendipitous incidents. We were walking around Morningside Heights after a party. It was a beautiful night and earlier in the evening I’d mentioned how I’d never been to Grant’s Tomb, but I thought it was somewhere around here. Sure enough, we happened upon a massive white structure that could only be one thing. And even though it was rather late, it was still open!
The tomb is seriously tall: 150 feet tall, in fact. It resembles Napoleon’s tomb at Les Invalides in Paris with its soaring domed ceiling. Grant’s Tomb was open late for Open House New York weekend, and downstairs by the sarcophagi, a historic reenactor was telling the story of Ulysses S. Grant’s life.
The Civil War general and US President is buried alongside his wife Julia. The sarcophagi are formidable, and to look up from them in the atrium of the tomb is a bit vertigo inducing. I definitely recommend a visit if you haven’t been. Although it would be hard to beat stumbling in accidentally for a late night visit on a quiet Saturday.
Hi Allison.
Found you on the Obscura Day website. A group of friends and I are wondering if you’d like to give us a tour of the Greenwood Catacombs. Is it possible?
When you get a friend request from me on Facebook, feel free to ignore it. I was just trying to figure out how to get in touch.
I love all the cool stuff you get into. If you have other ideas for stuff a group of urban adventurers should know about, please do tell!
Thanks!
Rod
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Roderick Kimball
(646) 785-9494
http://www.rodkimball.com
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Hi Rod. I’ll respond to you off the comments. Thanks for getting in touch.