Cemetery Receiving Vault

The cemetery receiving vault was built in 1876 when a need was presented to the board of trustees for a place to store bodies when the weather did not allow for graves to be dug by hand by the cemetery sexton in a timely manner. This receiving vault held the caskets and bodies of six individuals. There were also two individuals whose bodies were stored here overnight when the bodies were in transit to another cemetery. In 1885, the cemetery trustees purchased a bell from the Buckeye Bell Company in downtown Cincinnati for the steeple of the building. This bell was rung when a funeral procession entered the original cemetery grounds until the early 1930's when the practice was discontinued. The vault building has been used as a storage building and a historical point of interest for the original sections of the cemetery. In 2008, the remnants of Hurricane Isaac moved through the Cincinnati area, and the sustained winds from this storm caused significant damage to this building. from 2010-2012, the cemetery raised the funds to rehab and replace the roof, complete necessary brickwork, and repaint the entire structure. A sign was affixed to the front of the building honoring the businesses and groups that donated to the rehabilitation of the building.