Hillside in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Mt. Carmel Cemetery

Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 30, 2024

1. Mt. Carmel Cemetery Marker

Inscription. Consecrated on August 30, 1900 by Archbishop Patrick Feehan, Mt. Carmel Cemetery became the first cemetery to be opened in the western area of the Archdiocese. Initially, Mt. Carmel operated its own railroad connection directly from Chicago for funeral trains.

Mt. Carmel is the site of the Bishops Mausoleum where one Bishop, three Archbishops and three Cardinals are entombed, including most recently, Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, in 1996.

Mt. Carmel contains the largest concentration of private family mausoleums, over four hundred. This burial tradition of many Italian Catholic families flourishes at Mt. Carmel cemetery. Mt. Carmel Cemetery remains active with both lawn level marker graves and monument graves available for purchase in Sections 41, 42 and 43.

Erected by Catholic Cemeteries of Chicago.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Railroads & Streetcars • Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical date for this entry is August 30, 1900.

Location. 41° 52.151′ N, 87° 54.446′ W. Marker is in Hillside, Illinois, in Cook County. It is on Harrison Street south of Hillside Avenue, on the right when traveling east. The marker is a short distance inside Mt. Carmel cemetery

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from the northern entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 4951 Harrison Street, Hillside IL 60162, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Chicago.

It is also in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (approx. 0.4 miles away); Darmstadt Farm (approx. 0.4 miles away); a different marker also named Mt. Carmel Cemetery (approx. 0.4 miles away); Veterans Memorial (approx. half a mile away); Queen of Heaven Cemetery (approx. half a mile away); Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named Veterans Memorial (approx. half a mile away); Mater Dolorosa Seminary (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hillside.

More about this marker. An identical marker can be found at the south entrance near Roosevelt Road.

Regarding Mt. Carmel Cemetery. While Cardinal Bernadin was buried here in 1996 (as referenced on the marker), his successor, Cardinal Francis George, was not laid to rest here after he died in 2015; he is instead buried in Des Plaines, Illinois, in All Saints Cemetery.

Also see . . .
1. About Mt. Carmel Catholic Cemetery (Hillside).

Excerpt: "Many of the remains at
Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 30, 2024

2. Mt. Carmel Cemetery Marker
the Cemetery are people of Italian ancestry. There are over 400 individual family mausoleums, reflecting the burial tradition of many of the Italian Catholic families served by the Cemetery. Hundreds of headstones and monuments are adorned with statues and elaborate engravings of religious figures such as Jesus, crosses, the Blessed Mother, angels, and saints. Several monuments contain photographs of the buried deceased, another custom commonly found in Italian cemeteries."

(Submitted on May 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. The Forgotten Railways of Chicago: Cemetery Spurs and Stations.

Excerpt: “Mt. Carmel Cemetery was once served by the Chicago Aurora & Elgin Railroad. The line's primary service was for funeral trains, although it was also served as a stop between the cemetery and the main line at Bellwood, IL. Trains stopped serving the cemetery in the 1930's, yet satellite imagery still holds clues to the existence of this once gravely stop.”

(Submitted on May 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Mt. Carmel Cemetery entrance image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 30, 2024

3. Mt. Carmel Cemetery entrance

The marker is in the background.

The Bishop's Mausoleum and Chapel image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn

4. The Bishop's Mausoleum and Chapel

The final resting place for Chicago's bishops sits at the center of the cemetery, on high ground. Commissioned by Archbishop James Quigley in 1905, it was completed in 1912 and is the final resting place of Bishop William J. Quarter, Archbishop Patrick Feehan, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, Cardinal John Cody and Bishop James Duggan. The most recent Chicago archbishop to die, Cardinal Francis George, is buried in a different cemetery—All Saints, in Des Plaines.

Funeral for Archbishop James Quigley at Mt. Carmel Cemetery image. Click for full size.

Chicago Daily News Collection, Chicago History Museum, July 15, 1915

5. Funeral for Archbishop James Quigley at Mt. Carmel Cemetery

Credits. This page was last revised on July 27, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 648 times since then and 73 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 30, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 4, 5. submitted on May 14, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.