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About Pittsburgh Cemeteries

Learn About Pittsburgh Cemeteries, the Different Types of Cemeteries, Cemetery Burial Options and Types of Burial Lots in Southwestern PA

What is a Cemetery or Memorial Park?

  • A cemetery is a location where embalmed or cremated remains are buried or interred in a grave, mausoleum, columbarium, tomb or above ground vault.
  • A memorial park is a park designed for contemplation or recreation, commemorating the death of an individual or of many people through a natural or other disaster, or through military action.

The Staff at Rome Monument Are Experts on Pittsburgh Cemeteries

  • Since 1934, Rome Monument has been designing monuments, headstones and memorials that we deliver to, and install in, cemeteries in Pittsburgh.
  • The staff at Rome Monument has an intimate knowledge of these cemeteries, their features, positives and negatives, their grounds, monuments and their rules, regulations and restrictions.
  • To talk with a Rome Monument Cemetery Planning Advisor or to schedule a free consultation, call 724-770-0100 and ask to speak with Vince Dioguardi or Cris Morgan. Let one of these gentleman know your wants and needs and they can help match you with the right cemetery. We know the best cemeteries in Pittsburgh - it is our business.

Pictures of Monuments Built by Rome Monument for Pittsburgh Cemeteries

Types of Cemeteries in Pittsburgh

  • In Pittsburgh there are six basic types of cemeteries; veterans’ cemeteries, public cemeteries, green cemeteries (green or natural burial parks), religious cemeteries and municipal or district cemeteries. A sixth type of cemetery in Pittsburgh is called a historic cemetery and of course, there are "haunted cemeteries" in Pittsburgh.
  • However, many of these historic cemeteries do not sell burial plots or gravesites. 
  • If you are interested in learning how to pick out a good gravesite in a Pittsburgh cemetery, call us at 724-770-0100 and ask for Vince or Chris.

Veterans Cemeteries

Municipal Cemeteries

  • An example of a municipal cemetery is the Beaver Cemetery in Beaver, Pennsylvania which is located about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh.
  • It is managed by a nonprofit organization governed by a voluntary board of trustees.

Green Cemeteries and Natural Burial Parks

Religious Cemeteries

  • If you are considering arranging a burial a religious cemetery, talk with someone at your local church, synagogue, or mosque.
  • Religious cemeteries in Pittburgh differ according to cultural practices and religious beliefs.
  • The Catholic Cemeteries Association of the Diocese of Pittsburgh is an example of a religious organization that owns and operates religious cemeteries in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh residents most often choose public cemeteries for burials. Public cemeteries are owned by corporations or individuals. 

Public Cemeteries

Historic Cemeteries

Haunted Graveyards and Cemeteries in Pittsburgh

About Interment, Burial, Funeral and Cremation Services Available in Pittsburgh (More Info >)

  • Years ago, many families purchased plots in one cemetery, burial ground, memorial park or graveyard. Today, families are choosing other options.
  • After all, people move and convenience is important. Cemetery rules, regulations and restrictions may exclude certain memorialization or burial preferences. For instance, the bevel or slant marker, statue or upright monument, or bench memorial or bronze marker you planned on having may not be allowed in certain sections of a cemetery—or in the cemetery at all.
  • What is a cemetery’s policy on the disposition of cremated remains?
  • Church affiliations, even religious affiliations may have changed. Affordability is often an important factor. So is the way in which the cemetery grounds are managed and cared for.
  • Rome Monument provides interment and funeral service information and planning assistance for families in Pittsburgh.
  • Families in Allegheny County and Southwestern Pennsylvania contact Rome Monument for advice and assistance during the process of planning for burials, interments, cremations and inurnments.
  • Learn about interment (opening and closing) fees, entombment prices for mausoleum burial fees and inurnment fees for cremation burials.
  • The best thing you can do is to understand all your options prior to going to the cemetery or choosing a cemetery.
  • Call us at 724-770-0100 for information about interment and funeral services available in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area or click here to contact us online.

Talk to a Pittsburgh Cemetery Expert

  • As memorial builders, Rome makes it our priority to be fully informed and up-to-date on everything you need to know leading up to and following the passing of a loved one.
  • We have Certified Cremation Counselors and active members of The International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) on staff ready to help you through the cemetery selection process.
  • If you are considering purchasing a grave, gravesite or burial plot in a Pittsburgh area cemetery, you can talk to a Cemetery Planning Advisor or schedule a free consultation by calling 724-770-0100 and ask to speak with Vince Dioguardi or Cris Morgan. We will be happy to answer any questions you have about burial plot sizes, costs, monuments, markers and cemetery rules and regulations.
  • We know just about everyting there is to know about buying a cemetery site in Pittsburgh because we work with almost all of the cemeteries on a regular basis. We completely understand the restrictions that cemeteries in Pittsburgh have on burial vaults, monuments, grave markers and memorials. You can even ask us about their policies for floral remembrances that are placed on graves.

Prices for Burial Plots in Pittsburgh (More Info >)

  • For information on ground burial prices and ground burial space for cremation in Pittsburgh, call (724) 770-0100. Prices usually start at $500.00 - $1,000.00 for each grave or space and go up from there depending on the cemetery you choose and the section in the cemetery you pick.
  • Some cemeteries that have architecturally appealing buildings, exqusite statues, stained glass chapels, beautiful and open pastoral landscapes, quite and peaceful environs, tree-lined drive, stands of mature trees, sweeping vistas, tranquil fountains, ponds and lakes, parklike atmospheres, great historic value, top-notch security and well maintained grounds often charge a premium for their burial plots and gravesites.
  • Plots in Pittsburgh cemeteries with a lake view or a private garden cost more than plots that have less than optimal vistas. "Just like real-estate, it's location, location, location," said David Michener, president of Allegheny and Homewood cemeteries in Pittsburgh.
  • The price for a burial plot in Pittsburgh cemeteries is based on the type of plot, which section of the cemetery the plot is located and the number of plots purchased. For example certain sections in the Round Hill Cemetery in Elizabeth, Pa, located about 19 miles south of Pittsburgh cost $500.00 for a grave, while burial plots in other sections cost $950.00. They charge about $2,700.00 for double depth lawn crypts.
  • For information about the costs of cemetery lots, grave openings, crypts and niches at the Beaver Cemetery and Mausoleum in Beaver, Pennsylvania, click here. Prices for cemetery lots, as of October, 2015 range from $490.00 to $2,250.00. Prices for crypts range from $7,040.00 to $22,000.00.

Types of Burial Plots in Pittsburgh

  • In Pittsburgh the four most common types of burial plots are single plots, double or companion plots, family or estate plots and plots for cremated remains.
  • Individual or single plots are the most common type of plot purchased by families who live in Pittsburgh. The remains of one person are buried in these plots in a casket of vault.
  • Double plots are sold to together and are usually purchased for or by a married couple or "life partners". Cemeteries also get requests for companion plots for same sex couples and while most deny these requests, attitidues are changing.
  • Family or estate plots are areas in a cemetry sold to a family. Rome Monuments designs and manufactures estate memorials which often take the form of a large headstone engraved with the family name which marks the area of the graves or burial plots. In some cases individual monuments are used to mark the specific graves and in other cases, as each family member is buried, the name and dates are engraved on the large estate memorial.  
  • Some cemeteries such as the Saint John Vianney Parish Cemetery in Pittsburgh require that people who purchase a grave are Catholic, although Non-Catholics are allowed to be interred in their cemetery if the grave owner is a Catholic. The New Light Congregation in Pittsburgh operates the New Light Cemetery in Shaler Township. Their congregants receive a 20% discount on grave sites after a two year membership.

Mausoleums

How to Purchase a Burial Plot for a Grave for a Pet in Pittsburgh:

  • While most families in Pittsburgh bury their companion animals such as dogs and cats on their own property, usually in their backyard, more and more cemeteries in Pittsburgh are offering burial options for both humans and pets.
  • One example is the Jefferson Memorial Cemetery which offers pet owners the opportunity to purchase a single burial plot for their pet or they can purchase property within the Garden of Faithful Friends so that they can be buried near their pet. Prices for burying a pet in its own plot start at $350 and go up to over $1,000.00 depending on the animal’s size.
  • Both pets and humans must be buried in caskets or alternative containers.
  • Hillcrest Memorial Park in Hermitage, Pa., which is about 70 miles north of Pittsburgh has a section in the cemetery that permits the burial of pets and humans together.
  • Peaceful Pastures Pet Cemetery, which is owned and operated by Beinhauer Family Funeral Homes, is located next to the Beinhauer’s human cemetery, Woodruff Memorial Park which is located about 12 miles southwest of Pittsburgh.
  • Rome Monument sells pet memorials which are appropriate for pet cemeteries in Pittsburgh.

Cemetery Grounds and Monument Maintenance:

  • When people are trying to decide on where to purchase a grave or burial plot, it is important that they get information about how the cemetery grounds and monuments are maintained.
  • The Cemetery Planning Advisors at Rome Monument know which cemetery's management staffs place a priority on lawn and grave marker maintenance and care. If cemetery work crews are not vigilent about preventing water problems, standing water, water runoff and mud can obscure the names, dates and epitaphs on gravestones and headstones.  Excess water in a cemetery can create a mess around gravesites which is an ordeal for family members who are visiting the cemetery to pay their respects to their deceased love one (s). Call 724-770-0100 and ask to speak with Vince Dioguardi or Cris Morgan. Either gentleman can provide good advice and insight regarding the maintenance standards and practices of cemeteries in Pittsburgh.
  • Our staff knows the cemeteries in Pittsburgh that pay close attention to seeding, fertilizing, landscaping, watering, pruning, refuse removal, mowing, eradicating gophers and moles, inspecting, mulching, raking, planting and other services associated with cemetery maintenance. The best cemeteries in Pittsburgh properly maintain their cemetery drives, paths and sidewalks, trees, curbs, watering and irrigation systems, buildings, mausoleums, chapels, fences and gates. It is extremely important for cemeteries to continously raise, repair, clean, set and realign the monuments and headstones marking the gravesites because injury, or even death can occur if a monument or headstone starts to lean causing it to fall or tip over on to somebody decorating or visiting the gravestone.
  • Call 724-770-0100 and ask to speak with Vince Dioguardi or Cris Morgan to find out which cemeteries in Pittsburgh take the best care of their burial grounds and grave markers. Both men are very experienced in helping families make the best choice when deciding where to buy graves, cemetery spaces and cemetery lots in Pittsburgh.

Cemetery Grave or Burial Plot Sizes in Pittsburgh:

  • A standard grave is about 8 feet long and 2 1/2 feet wide.
  • This sizes provides room for an upright monument or flat grave marker.
  • Some burial plots may be up to 9 feet long or 4 feet wide to accommodate a person of larger size.
  • Most cemeteries use standard sizes for single and double plots.

Cemetery Options for the Final Disposition of Cremated Remains:

  • Many families in Allegheny County, PA choose cremation because of the flexibility this option offers.
  • People from Western Pennsylvania often decide to have an urn buried at a cemetery that has facilities for cremated remains months or even years after the memorial service for the deceased was conducted.
  • These facilities may be burial spaces alongside trails, special gardens or indoor or outdoor columbariums.
  • In 2013, Allegheny Cemetery opened a hillside trail with beautiful views to provide Pittsburgh families with another option for cremated burials.  
  • In Squirrel Hill, the Homewood Cemetery maintains a beautiful lawn garden cremation garden, an indoor mausoleum and garden mausoleums for the final disposition of cremated remains.
  • The Union Dale Cemetery in Pittsburgh offers a Memorial Walk, private columbarium grave space, an above-ground columbarium for cremated remains, standard grave spaces that may hold up to two cremations and cemetery sites designated for cremation burials.
  • Jefferson Memorial Cemetery in Pittsburgh offers indoor and outdoor columbarium niches for cremated human remains which are often referred to as cremains.
  • For more information about cemeteries that provide options for the final disposition of cremated remains, call 724-770-0100 and ask to speak with Vince Dioguardi or Cris Morgan.

Monument Delivery and Installation for Pittsburgh Cemeteries (More Info >)

  • Rome Monument sells, designs, builds, delivers and installs monuments and memorials in Pittsburgh, Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania. In the case of individual and family cemetery monuments, we offer free local delivery and installation. In cases where we are delivering a monument outside of our local area, we may negotiate or quote an additional delivery fee.
  • For more information about monument delivery and installation call 724-770-0100 or inquire online >

Monuments, Memorials and Headstones in Pittsburgh Cemeteries

Rome Monument Provides On-Site Cemetery Monument and Memorial Lettering and Engraving Services (More Info >)

  • Rome Monument frequently places inscriptions and engravings on headstones, gravestones and memorials that have already been set in a cemetery in Pittsburgh.
  • It doesn't matter if we built the monument or another momument company designed the monument.
  • We are experts at copying the matching engraving style, alphabet, font and letter sizes in use on the monument.
  • We typically perform our mobile lettering and engraving services to etch names and birth and death dates on companion/double headstones and family and estate monuments that memorialize more than one person.
  • In most cases, we don't have to remove the monument from the ground, base or foundation.
  • Most of the cemetery on-site engraving work is performed on granite monuments although we occasionally work with older monuments made from marble and sandstone during cemetery restoration projects.
  • Most of the work we do is peformed by hand using basic engraving and stenciling tools and equipment. Click here to view pictures of the on-site cemetery monument engraving process.

Monument and Gravestone Maintenance, Cleaning, Repair and Restoration Services in Pittsburgh, PA (More Info >)

  • Rome Monument offers monument and gravestone maintenance, cleaning and restoration services to families and cemeteries alike.
  • Call us at 724-770-0100 for more information or to request our headstone cleaning services.
  • Click here to request more information or to schedule gravestone cleaning services if you would like to talk with Rome Monument about our restoring a monument (s) to it's original appearance.
  • Families, from time to time will clean the memorials if and when they have time and the ability.
  • Rome Monument is always happy to clean and maintain gravestones on behalf of families, cemetery managers and individuals in Pittsburgh.
  • We have the experience, tools, equipment, acids, bristle brushes, pressure washers and manpower required to clean family memorials in a professional manner.

How Cemeteries in Pittsburgh Make Money:

Scheduling A Burial at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies:

  • To schedule a burial at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, located southwest of Pittsburgh in Bridgeville, PA , please contact the National Cemetery Scheduling Office by following the instructions listed here http://www.cem.va.gov/cem/burial_benefits/need.asp or fax all discharge documentation to the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 1-866-900-6417 and follow-up with a phone call to 1-800-535-1117. 
  • The 292 acre National Cemetery of the Alleghenies situated approximately 20 miles southwest of Pittsburgh, was dedicated in 2005 by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs' National Cemetery Administration. This cemetery has space available to accommodate casketed and cremated remains. It is one of the newest cemeteries in the National Cemetery system.

Burials at Allegheny Cemetery:

Burials at The Homewood Cemetery:

  • At the 204 acre non-denominational, non-sectarian Homewood Cemetery, located near the center of Allegheny County, accomodates every form of legal burial including: traditional burial in a single in-ground lot or a double depth lawn crypt. Inurnment, with placement of cremated remains in an urn garden or family lot is also accommodated.
  • For assistance with a burial at the Homewood Cemetery, please call 412-421-1822.
  • Their staff will help you choose from the wide range of burial options, and price ranges offered.

Cemetery Arrangements and Purchasing Burial Space at Jefferson Memorial Cemetery:

How To Choose a Burial Plan at Plum Creek Cemetery:

Cemetery Arrangements at Union Dale Cemetery:

  • The Union Dale Cemetery in Pittsburgh is a 96 acre hilltop family cemetery incorporated in 1846.
  • The nonprofit cemetery offers attractive lots for traditional burial as well as cremated remains.
  • This charming burial ground consistently ranks among the best cemeteries in terms of maintenance and appearance in the Pittsburgh area.
  • To start the process of making cemetery arrangements at Union Dale visit http://www.uniondalecemetery.org/services.php.
  • To get specific information about cemetery arrangements call (412) 321-0774.

Cemetery Arrangements and Burial Plots at The McKeesport and Versailles Cemetery:

How to Arrange a Burial at Penn Forest Natural Burial Park: