Death in New York: History and Culture of Burials, Undertakers and Executions

Like every aspect of life in the Big Apple, how New Yorkers have interacted with death is as diverse as each of the countless individuals who have called the city home. Waves of immigration brought unique burial customs as archaeological excavations uncovered the graves of indigenous Lenape and enslaved Africans. Events such as the 1788 Doctors' Riot—a response to years of body snatching by medical students and physicians—contributed to new laws protecting the deceased. Overcrowding and epi...