There are always sights to see at Lakeview Cemetery and new history to learn. Today we decided this open area would be a good place to walk together while staying far from others.
There are local and more widely known celebrities here for their final rest. Alan Freed was a part of creating the music name of rock and roll. He was born in Pennsylvania, but spent his youth in Ohio. He made a name with AM radio (it was a long time ago) in the Cleveland area. His career was brought down on the east coast when he was reported to have accepted "payola" for promoting acts. He might have been called an influencer today and revered. He died young on the west coast. He was returned to Cleveland for burial at a grave marked by a marker in the shape of an old jukebox.
Harvey Pekar was a graphic artist who wrote comic books under the title American Splendor. For over thrity years, his gritty view of Clevaland with a mix if social issues still has a following today. He died in suburban Cleveland in 2010, but still has a following. Visitors to his grave site push pens into the ground.
Carl Stokes was a veteran of WWII, a member of the Ohio House, a judge, and ambassador, but will always be remembered as Cleveland's first black mayor serving two terms. He passed from cancer and rests with a modest marker identifying his final resting place.
Dr. Mark Anthony Smith is much lessor known than those above, but he was a pioneer in the study of Alzheimers Disease and his 100+ published works still rank him as one of the leading pioneers in the field of Alzheimers. He has an elaborate marker which strangely carries his own signature.
Ray Chapman is a name I remember from my youth. It's not because I old enough to remember Ray Chapman, but my Dad had a book about Cleveland baseball history that included a detailed account of the death of Ray Chapman after being hit in the head by a pitched ball. I was crazy for baseball and read that book over and over. Chapman's grave is still visited regularily by baseball fans.
John Newberry was one of the founders of the Geological Society of America. His scholarly work earned him lasting honors including the naming the goby (Eucyclogobius newberryi), the rainbow trout (Salmon newberryi), the glacial Lake Newberry in New York and the Newberry Volcano in Oregon.
We paid a visit to the Garfield Monument in the cemetery, but preservation work of the facility was still in progress. We did enjoy the early spring blossoms on the lawn in front of the monument.
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