Lakeview Cemetery is a large, 51-acre cemetery located at 885 Boston Avenue in a rather run-down section of Bridgeport. Established in 1810 and originally named Pembroke Burial Ground, in 1872 and '73, the interments were moved a quarter mile down the road to their current location. In 1893, the name was changed to Lakeview Cemetery. The earliest graves date from around 1800, but there are two graves lost among the multitude, that date from the mid-1700s. (These graves belong to Mr. & Mrs. Sherman, pictured, below.) The cemetery is packed with monuments from different eras, many crammed on top of one another, with no rhyme or reason as to why certain areas are jammed with mixed-era burials while other areas remain sparse. The right-hand side of the cemetery has mostly recent burials against the fence, that give the cemetery a garish, carnival-like feel. All manner of ornamentation, tchotchkes, and large flags (with huge portraits of the deceased) adorn the fence. The best way I can describe the cemetery is...bizarre (see the photo of the "chair", below). Aviation pioneer, Gustave Whitehead, who supposedly took to the skies before the Wright Brothers, is buried here. (His memorial follows.) Lakeview also has two extensive sections for war veterans, many who died in service. While most veterans are from the two World Wars, there are also veterans of the Spanish-American War, the Philippine Insurrection, the Mexican Border service, the Korean War, and Vietnam. Just a few blocks away is Saint Augustine Cemetery.

Interesting inhabitant of Lakeview Cemetery: Theophilus Judd. Although born in Fairfield County, Judd fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War. After the Battle of Gettysburg, wounded Confederate prisoners were detained in West U.S. Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. On 31 August 1863, to secure his release, Judd had to swear the Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America. He returned to Bridgeport, Connecticut and remained here until his death on 11 May 1910 (aged 71 or 72 years). I was unaware of his story at the time of my visit and therefore did not photograph his grave.

Curious as to why Bridgeport - Connecticut's most populous city that can trace its earliest European settlement to 1644 - only has one cemetery with stones dating from the 1700s? Visit the page, The Mystery of Bridgeport's Missing Cemeteries.

Estimated number of interments, as of February 2025: over 25,904.

A few photos were taken 4 April 2011; the majority were taken 26 July 2021.

The Wilson monument, dated 1875. Several members of the Wilson family are buried on this plot. 

"Walter S. Hotchkiss

Capt. 2nd Conn. Lt. Battery

Born March 18, 1833

Died Dec. 9, 1879

A brave soldier"

"Our Monte,

son of W.W. & Jennie A. Walker,

died Apr. 12, 1881,

aged 14 yrs, 1 mo."

"FLT

Edmund D. Wilmarth

Jan. 31, 1841

Aug. 23 1885"

(FLT stands for Friendship, Love and Truth and signifies membership in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.)

"Ellen E. Bennett

His wife

Mar. 27, 1841

Apr. 8, 1905"

"Erected by his Shipmates on the U.S.F.S. Chicago to the memory of HARRY OAK who was killed while in discharge of duty in Portland, Me. Sept 7, 1891" He was 51 years and 6 months old. 

Cause of death on record listed as "accident (crushed)". 

Department of Navy Records of Casualties: US Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured in Selected Accidents and Other Incidents Not Directly the Result of Enemy Action:

"USS Chicago steamer being lowered into cradles when hook carried away and killed Harry Oak. 7 Sep. 1891."  

The Daskam cross. Several members of the Daskam family are interred on this plot. 

This chair does not belong to any memorial or commemorate anyone in particular. It's possibly a "mourning chair", created for visitors to the cemetery to use. Urban legends have evolved, saying that if you sit in these "devil's chairs" (usually at night), your will either be cursed with bad luck and possibly death for your hubris; alternately, you may be rewarded with good fortune for your bravery.

"In memory of

Yeghia & Takhouie Demirjian

Father and mother of John Demirjian

Massacred by the Turks

in the 1915 Armenian Genocide

Rest in Peace

Grandmother and Grandfather"

"Gustave Whitehead

Jan. 1, 1874 Oct. 10, 1927

Father of Connecticut Aviation

On Aug. 15, 1964 this headstone was erected by the Connecticut Aeronautical Historical Association as a tribute to the efforts and genius of Gustave Whitehead, aviation pioneer, inventor, designer and builder of many early aircraft and engines. Whitehead constucted the first airplane in Connecticut. A student of the German aeronautical pioneer, Otto Lilienthal, he claimed to have successfully flown his Number 21 and 22 airplanes at Fairfield, Bridgeport and Lordship during 1901 and 1902."

""First in Flight"

1901

Gustave Whitehead

Recognized by:

The "Bible" of aviation, Jane's All the World's Aircraft in their 100th edition (2013 - 2014) The Connecticut General Assembly, June 25, 2013 & the Governor of Connecticut, Dannel P. Malloy, June 26, 2013"

Whitehead's earliest flight predates the Wright Brothers' by two years. Whitehead was brushed aside when the estate of Orville Wright stipulated that the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, as a condition of owning and displaying the Wright Brothers' 1903 Wright Flyer, must recognize and label it as the first heavier-than-air machine to make a manned, powered, controlled and sustained flight. If the Smithsonian acknowledged Gustave Whitehead's achievement, the institution would lose the right to display the Wright Brothers' flying machine.

"BUGBEE

L. C. Bugbee

Died Sept. 29, 1943

Grace R.

His wife

Died Nov. 13, 1932"

"Moreton M. Cory

1882 - 1940"

An enormous stone, inscribed, "Abbott". There are no dates or nearby stones with that surname. 

The Scofield plot. 

The unusual Guba memorial. 

One of the two sections dedicated to US war veterans. 

"Korean Campaign

Earl F. Chambers

2d Lieut.

Co. B 502d Airbne. Inf.

Died July 27, 1953

Age 21"

Chambers was killed, according to his fellow platoon members, the night of the ceasefire. He was supposedly the last officer killed during the Korean War. Chambers was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal. Chambers's name is inscribed on the Bridgeport Korean War memorial, located at the intersection of Broad Street and State Street.

"Vietnam

Birden J. Lawson, Jr.

Corporal

187th Inf. 101st Abn. Div.

Died May 18, 1969

Age 20"

Corporal Birden J. Lawson, Jr. was killed by North Vietnamese forces while trying to take Hill 937 (Dong Ap Bia or "Hamburger Hill"), Thua Thien province, South Vietnam. He was awarded the Purple Heart and his name appears on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Lawson is not buried within the veterans' section, but is found along the perimeter of the cemetery.

All photos copyright by the author, 2021. Not to be used or reproduced without permission.

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