TRANSFORMING an OLD CEMETERY INTO a PARK 
!Maple Hill Cemetery, one of the 
old burial grounds of Minneapolis, 
which had for years been weed- 
grown, unsightly, and unusued, was 
last year turned over to the park 
board, and thoroughly transformed. 
It is expected to ultimately become a 
part of the park system and Park Su- 
perintendent Theodore Wirth has al- 
ready prepared plans for its develop- 
ment as a school garden and play- 
ground. 
IMapIe Hill came under the juris- 
diction of the park board in Febru- 
ary, 1908, and the council appropri- 
ated $5,000 for its improvement. In 
July the cleaning up of the much ne- 
glected and untidy grounds began. 
All dead and undesirable trees and 
shrubs were removed, and the re- 
maining trees given a thorough prun- 
ing. Weeds were grubbed out and 
the grounds leveled. Monuments 
were disturbed only where grading 
made it necessary to lower them. 
It became evident towards the end 
of the season that to protect the 
stone monuments from vandalism 
the grounds would have to be fenced 
in. A seven-foot high galvanized pipe 
and wire netting fence with an effect- 
ive three-wire ornamental top protec- 
tion was built around the grounds 
with gates at each corner. The cost 
of the fence was 58 cents a foot. 
The cost of the work so far com- 
pleted was as follows : 
Grading and forestry work .. $2,418.9,3 
Survey 156.67 
Fence 1.300.06 
Total $3,974.66 
The school garden is planned for 
the southeast corner of the grounds 
which has not been used for burial 
purposes and has been graded to a 
level. The plan shows this section 
divided into 120 regular garden beds 
6x15 feet. The two main paths 8 feet 
wide have arches 10 feet apart. 
Superintendent Wirth recommends 
that the garden be properly laid out, 
fenced in, and that Miss La Rue, the 
principal of the Pierce school, be 
given the use of it for the pupils of 
her school under the general super- 
vision of the park board. 
The plan also provides for an out- 
door gymnasium, a small children’s 
playground, a recreation building, 
etc., leaving the present attractive 
groves for the free use of the public 
in general. All this can only be car- 
ried out after all the monuments have 
been removed, but it is recommended 
that the school garden be established 
tfi.s season. 
CLEANING UP IN MAPLE HILL CEMETERY. MINNEAPOLIS. 
