HIGHLAND CEMETERY
2167 Dixie Highway
Fort Mitchell, KY 41017-2998
859.331.3220
Established: 1869
Acres: 250
Official Website
Bella Morte Rating: 1 Tombstone
There are times when there isn't very much good to say about a cemetery. Highland, located in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky is a case in point. We found ourselves driving through the Dixie Highway entrance with few illusions regarding the prospects for the graveyard and that was what kept us from being disappointed when we realized there truly wasn't much of interest to explore.
Of its 250 acres, only 125 are currently used for burials. The remaining 125 serve as a Wildlife refuge and it is in this area visitors will find approximately 4 miles of hiking trails. While the shaded paths appeared lovely and inviting, we reminded ourselves we were there to revel in crypts, stone sculptures and other deathly delights, not to grab backpacks and set out for a few hours of exercise!
Highland has a handful (and we do mean handful!) of angels and mourning figures. Of these, none is truly noteworthy--all are (or were at the time they were placed in Highland) stock items which are common fare in most graveyards dating back over 100 years. These sculptures, for the most part, stand amidst an ocean of flat stones or, at most, plain uprights. There are also a few private family mausoleums, but, again, these weren't exactly inspirational. One did have a small engraved symbol on it which may have been intended to represent Alpha and Omega...though, to us, it resembled the supposedly-demonic/evil "stick thing" from "Blair Witch Project." We realize that is hardly interesting, but that's how difficult it is to find anything to write about this place!
Highland does have an outdoor mausoleum which, again, is unremarkable. We at Bella Morte find such structures sterile and rather depressing in their lack of individuality. Their formulaic inscriptions: Name, birth and death date seem a sad conclusion to lives which surely made a difference to others, if only friends and family.
There is also a chapel which is used for committal services. The original structure burned in 1917. It was reconstructed later that same year and has served the community ever since, save for a period of about four or five years in the late 1940s to early 1950s when, for some unknown reason, it was utilized as a storage facility.
One more thing. If you do happen to visit Highland (and we certainly aren't suggesting you do anything so rash!), you may as well drive past the hiking trails (located far back in the cemetery in Section 37) and visit the Pet Cemetery which is at the very end of the road. It's interesting to note there is often more information provided on a beloved deceased pet's grave than there is on that of their human companions! We found ourselves more engaged in exploration here than in the main body of the cemetery. Poignant, amusing and touching tributes abound in the Pet Cemetery and visiting this tiny graveyard will, at the very least, make you feel your journey was not wholly in vain.
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