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Greenwood Cemetery was established between Leonard Street and Walker Avenue in 1859 when farmers Daniel and Sophronia Bush sold 20 acres to the city. This cemetery kept steady growth in size with an additional 20 acres added in 1883, and a 40-acre plot added in 1889. The 80-acre burial ground displays three types of landscape designs. In its early years, it was established as a park cemetery, while later it evolved into the “lawn cemetery style” in the 1860s with graves placed near gardens and trees. The north part of Greenwood is a hybrid of sorts; part lawn cemetery and part memorial park, with large monuments and curved drives paving the footpath around the grounds.
The headstones at Greenwood Cemetery aren’t lavish, likely due to the fact that the families who are buried there were of modest means, according to Dilley. The one exception is a large monument of William H. Harrison, a successful wagon and carriage manufacturer. Harrison’s monument is the largest marker in the cemetery. His family, including his first and second wives, are buried at the foot of the monument.
This cemetery is located on 1401 Leonard Street, Grand Rapids, Kent County, Michigan.