106 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM {landmark} words by MARGARET KOENIG • photography by ROBB MOST st. john’s cemetery Despite being the only graveyard in San Mateo, St. John’s Cemetery goes largely unnoticed unless you seek it out. Hidden along a dead-end street within a quiet, residential neighborhood, the nine-acre site has sometimes been referred to as a secret garden—although you’ll find far more gravestones than flowers. The crowning jewel is the elaborate Parrott family crypt, where generations of the Parrott family are buried. It dates back to 1886, the year that immensely successful banker John Parrott Sr. died. John and his wife Abby owned the 377-acre Baywood estate in San Mateo and after her husband’s death, Abby devoted her life to philanthropy. She regularly hosted meals for the local homeless population at her estate, and donated six acres of land to the Roman Catholic Church for the creation of St. John’s Cemetery. The graveyard initially offered three consecrated acres for Catholics and two unconsecrated acres for Protestants, as well as a designated area for “paupers.” Since those days, people from all walks of life have been buried here. Near the Parrott family crypt is the impressive mausoleum built for Agnes Poett Howard Bowie, another early resident of the area. These elaborate structures stand in stark contrast to the simple crosses marking the graves of those of modest means. Off the main path, you can find these unassuming memorials clustered near one edge of the cemetery’s grounds. Some have headstones so old and faded that they are nearly illegible, the identities of their inhabitants erased by the relentless passage of time. With a population of 3,700 souls, the cemetery is nearly full, but some space still remains for those interested in spending eternity within its peaceful grounds.
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