A place in Wisconsin that carries the weight of history so quietly you almost miss it. The first time I visited, I expected a somber, gray afternoon, but what I found instead was a sprawling green landscape filled with towering trees, ornate stone monuments, and the kind of stillness that makes you want to slow down and actually look. This is where a city’s most powerful brewing families were laid to rest, names that shaped not just a city but an entire American industry.
Founded in eighteen fifty, it is the oldest operating cemetery in the city and now holds the distinction of being the first accredited arboretum there. It is equal parts living forest, outdoor museum, and one of the most fascinating historical destinations in the entire Midwest.
Milwaukee’s Oldest Cemetery and Its Surprising Origins
Most people do not expect a cemetery to have a founding story this compelling. Forest Home Cemetery was established in 1850 by St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, with a guiding principle that still stands out today: it would be open to all faiths and operate as a not-for-profit.
That was genuinely forward-thinking for mid-19th century America, and it set the tone for everything that followed.
The grounds were designed by Increase A. Lapham, a celebrated Wisconsin naturalist and scientist.
He modeled the layout after rural garden cemeteries like Mt. Auburn in Massachusetts, using curving roads that follow the natural contours of the land rather than cutting straight through it.
The result feels less like a traditional burial ground and more like a landscape you would want to explore on foot.
Forest Home spans nearly 200 acres and today holds the official status of Milwaukee’s first accredited arboretum, a designation it earned in 2021. Over 2,600 trees grow across the property, representing dozens of species.
Visiting feels like wandering through a living collection of natural history layered on top of human history, which is exactly what it is. The cemetery is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Beer Barons Who Built Milwaukee and Now Rest Here Together
There is something quietly remarkable about the fact that so many of Milwaukee’s legendary brewing families ended up as neighbors in the same cemetery. Jacob Best, who founded the Best Brewing Company that eventually became Pabst Brewing, rests here.
His son-in-law Frederick Pabst, who turned that company into one of the largest breweries in the world, is buried nearby with his family in an ornate, attention-commanding plot.
Valentin Blatz, founder of the Valentin Blatz Brewing Company and the man credited with introducing Milwaukee’s first individually bottled product, has a large granite mausoleum on the grounds that many consider an unofficial symbol of the cemetery itself. Emil Blatz, another member of the brewing family, went further and erected a 500-ton mausoleum that is hard to miss.
Joseph Schlitz, who took over August Krug’s brewing enterprise and renamed it after himself, is also interred at Forest Home. August Krug himself is buried here too, along with the Uihlein brothers, Krug’s nephews who later managed the company.
The sheer concentration of industry-shaping figures in one place makes Forest Home feel less like a cemetery and more like an open-air hall of fame.
The Landmark Chapel and Its Hidden Underground History
From a distance, the Landmark Chapel looks like something lifted from a European village and gently set down in the middle of Milwaukee. Completed in 1892, the Gothic Revival-style building is one of the most photographed features of the cemetery, and for good reason.
The stonework, the arched windows, and the overall scale of it feel genuinely dramatic against the backdrop of the surrounding trees.
What most visitors do not immediately realize is what lies beneath it. The chapel’s basement is home to the Upper Midwest’s first crematory, installed in 1896.
Tours of the old crematorium have become one of the cemetery’s most popular offerings, and reviewers consistently describe it as both educational and surprisingly fascinating rather than unsettling.
The chapel also connects to the Halls of History, an indoor mausoleum and community center with exhibits focused on Milwaukee’s broader history. It adds another layer to the experience, shifting Forest Home from a place you simply walk through into one you can actually learn from.
I found myself spending far longer in and around the chapel than I had planned, which seems to be a common outcome for visitors who take the time to explore it properly.
Guided Tours That Make History Feel Personal
Forest Home Cemetery offers guided tours that cover a genuinely impressive range of topics, and that variety is part of what makes them so good. Past themes have included Women of Influence, Milwaukee’s Musicians, Funerary Art and Symbolism, and tours of the historic crematorium.
Each one approaches the same physical space from a completely different angle, which keeps the experience fresh even for repeat visitors.
The tours are ticketed and run on a seasonal schedule, though events happen year-round. Picking up a map and visitor guide from the office before heading out on a self-guided visit is also a solid option.
The staff at the front office have a well-earned reputation for being genuinely helpful and enthusiastic about the site’s history, which makes a real difference when you are trying to navigate 200 acres of winding paths.
One reviewer described a funerary art tour as equal parts educational and entertaining, noting that the grounds are so massive the tours could easily run two to three times as long. That tracks with my own experience.
The cemetery rewards slow, curious exploration more than any quick loop around the main paths. Bring water, comfortable shoes, and more time than you think you need.
The Arboretum Side of Forest Home That Most People Miss
Most visitors come for the history and leave without fully registering that they have also just walked through one of Wisconsin’s finest tree collections. In 2021, Forest Home officially became Milwaukee’s first accredited arboretum, a recognition of the more than 2,600 trees that grow across its nearly 200 acres.
The variety is genuinely impressive, with dozens of species represented throughout the grounds.
Fall is the obvious peak season for the trees. The canopy shifts into reds, oranges, and golds, and the contrast against the stone monuments and mausoleums creates a visual effect that is hard to describe without sounding like you are overselling it.
Birdwatchers also find the property rewarding throughout the year, and deer sightings are apparently common enough that multiple reviewers mention them casually.
The landscape design by Increase A. Lapham means the roads and paths curve naturally with the terrain rather than cutting through it in straight lines.
That design choice, made back in 1850, is a big part of why the arboretum feels so immersive today. You are never quite sure what you will find around the next bend, which gives even a solo afternoon walk here a genuinely exploratory quality that most urban green spaces cannot replicate.
Civil War Veterans and the Broader Scope of Milwaukee History
The brewing families get most of the attention, but Forest Home holds far more than just industry titans. Over 1,000 Civil War veterans are buried within the cemetery’s grounds, and their presence gives the site a depth that extends well beyond Milwaukee’s commercial history.
Memorial Day events at the cemetery have become a tradition, with reenactors and community gatherings that bring that history back into the present in a genuinely moving way.
Other notable figures interred here include politicians, founders of institutions, musicians, and individuals whose names now appear on Milwaukee streets and buildings. The self-guided tour materials available from the office do a solid job of connecting those names to the stories behind them, which transforms what might otherwise feel like a list of unfamiliar names into something much more engaging.
Forest Home also has an online self-tour that several reviewers have called one of the best they have encountered at any historic cemetery in the country. That kind of resource matters when you are navigating 200 acres and trying to make sense of what you are looking at.
The cemetery functions almost like a compressed version of Milwaukee’s entire social and political history, compressed into one beautifully maintained landscape that rewards genuine curiosity.
Planning Your Visit to Forest Home Cemetery and Arboretum
Getting the most out of a visit here takes a little planning, but not much. The cemetery is open Monday through Friday from 8 AM to 4:30 PM and on Saturdays from 10 AM to 3 PM.
It is closed on Sundays, so that is worth keeping in mind before making the trip. Arriving early on a weekday gives you the best chance of having the grounds nearly to yourself, which changes the atmosphere considerably.
Stopping at the office first is genuinely worth doing. The staff can provide a visitor guide, point you toward the most significant monuments, and give you a heads-up about any upcoming tours or events.
The guided tours fill up, so checking the schedule on the official website before your visit is a smart move if you have a specific theme in mind.
Comfortable walking shoes are a must because the grounds are large and the terrain is gently uneven in places. A water bottle is a good idea too, especially in warmer months when you might end up spending several hours exploring without realizing it.
The experience is self-paced, unhurried, and completely unlike anything else in Milwaukee. It is one of those places that earns its reputation the moment you actually spend time in it.
Address: 2405 West Forest Home Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53215
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