Birmingham Lafayette Cemetery - West Chester, Pennsylvania

Located at:

1235 Birmingham Road
West Chester, PA 19382

Phone: 610-793-1569

Office hours of the superintendent are 10 till 4pm, Monday through Friday.

Birmingham Lafayette Cemetery. West Chester, PA.

About:

Birmingham Lafayette is a non-profit cemetery with a fairly healthy amount of cash reserves. At the end of 2015 they had $2,627,320. In addition, they are still selling burial plots, so that fund has a good chance to continue growing.

$84,170 of their 2015 revenue came from burials.
$12,358 came from foundations.
$46,734 came from lot sales.

Oberservations:

This is a nice out-in-the-country type of cemetery. Part of the revolutionary war was fought here and the dead from both sides are beneath this ground in mass graves.

The cemetery has a serene, tranquil setting. Many of the gravestones are old. Some are quite unusual. I really enjoyed my visit here.

Resources:

Form 990 showing financial condition.

Pricing information as of January 2019:

$1600 for opening and closing an adult grave requiring no special equipment.
$1850 for opening and closing an adult grave at double depth.
$450 is the extra charge they impose for opening and closing a grave on a Saturday or Sunday.

Cremated remains:

$1000 for opening and closing a grave for cremated remains requiring no special equipment.
$250 is the extra charge for opening and closing a cremated remains grave on a weekend.

Burials of children under 2 years of age:

$700 for opening and closing a child's grave - under 2 years of age - no special equipment.

Grave lot pricing (includes perpetual care):

$10,000 for an 8 grave lot.
$5400 for a 4 grave lot.
$3200 for a 2 grave lot.
$1800 for a 1 grave lot.
$1100 for a cremains lot, which includes 2 spaces.

Other fees:

$250 for a permit to remove and replace a monument.
Minimum foundation fee is $300. The rate is calculated at 65 cents per square inch.
There could be additional charges for dealing with frozen ground, rock, or roots.

Notes:

A concrete or steal casket vault is required for all interments, including for cremains urns.
A grave is 4' x 8'. Headstones cannot exceed 4' in height and 16" front to back.
"Stones or monuments other than conventional style, shape or material must be approved by the cemetery board."