greenwood cemetery (it's not square)

So I bet you didn't know that Greenwood Cemetery isn't square. It's not. It's totally not. It's not even a quadrilateral. That thing's got more sides than... well, something with a lot of sides.

I got up this morning to go for a run, and I thought to myself, "Gee, what a great idea! Since I'm half asleep anyway, why don't I run around the cemetery? It's not that big, and once I get more than halfway through it, I'll have to keep going so I can get home."

Genius.

This is what Greenwood Cemetery actually looks like (thanks google):

I count 11 sides. And after the first three, I kept thinking, "well, once I turn this corner, I'll have to be back on Seventh Avenue, on my way home." No. Not quite the case.

So it turns out that there are some really cool things in Greenwood Cemetery (this you did know, I'm sure), but you can't really see them all, when you're so focused on each corner being your last. (Did I mention that I'm not really much of a runner, anyway?)

Greenwood was built in 1838 and people liked it so much that, until Prospect Park was built in 1866, it served Brooklyn as the biggest public green, where people would go and eat picnics and (perhaps) run around. It covers 478 acres and contains 550,000 interments and monuments, including those of:

Jean Michel Basquiat, graffiti artist, Andy Warhol protege
Henry Ward Beecher, abolitionist, religious leader, subject of scandal
Leonard Bernstein, music giant: composer, conductor, and teacher
Henry Chadwick, "Father of Baseball"
Kate Claxton, actress on stage during the Brooklyn Theater fire
Joey Gallo, mobster nicknamed "Crazy Joe"
Horace Greeley, editor of the New York Tribune
William Surrey Hart, cowboy actor
Laura Keene, actress on stage at Ford's Theatre when President Lincoln was shot
Frank Morgan, actor, best known for his role as the Wizard in "The Wizard of Oz"
Louis Comfort Tiffany, jeweler
"Boss" Tweed, political boss of New York City

It's really very beautiful, with some scenic vistas and a pond. (a freaking pond! I never would have run around it if I had known there was space FOR A POND!)
There's also a monument of Minerva saluting the Statue of Liberty, commemorated in 1920 to mark the Battle of Brooklyn, the first battle of the American Revolution on August 27, 1776 (who knew?) Apparently they need our help to save her. go here and help.

This is what she looks like to the Statue of Liberty (who probably makes fun of her for being so short):
Visit the official Greenwood Cemetery site for more interesting facts and information (which is where I got most of my stuff here).

Also check out the satellite map and look at the bottom of the map -- there's this cool train yard and bus parking lot, which I also never knew was there. So much to learn.

I'm totally going to take a guided tour of the cemetery, just not today. I can't really walk today.