Arboretum and Grounds

View of The Ascent in downtown Covington from the Linden Grove Cemetery & Arboretum grounds.

Historic Origins

Linden Grove Cemetery & Arboretum is an historic cemetery sitting on 22.3 acres in the City of Covington and was officially consecrated on September 18, 1843 on land originally owned by the Western Baptist Theological Institute. So that makes Linden Grove over 177 years old!

After many decades of neglect, the property fell into great disrepair, causing the Kenton County Circuit Court to order in 1948 that it be placed into a receivership. A series of Court-appointed Trustees were responsible for management of the Cemetery—up until 1998—when the City of Covington and the Kenton County Fiscal Court established an Inter-Local Agreement for a new Board of Overseers to manage and operate the Cemetery. You can see the current members of the Board of Overseers here!

In 2001, the Cemetery was placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. And in 2010, a Kentucky Historic Marker was installed in Linden Grove Cemetery, which provides a permanent indication of the historic and cultural significance of the Cemetery in the development of the City of Covington and Northern Kentucky.

We hope to use our monthly newsletter as an opportunity to continue to educate about the historic significance of our Cemetery & Arboretum and how our community can utilize this wonderful, urban greenspace right in downtown Covington!

Follow us on social media below and check out our favorite hashtags: #LindenLives #UrbanGreenspace #LovetheCov