The last thing you might expect to hear while walking through a graveyard is music — and lots of it — but that’s precisely what’s in store Oct. 18 during the 24th annual Tale of the Tombstones guided walking tour of Forest Home Cemetery.
An awful lot of people (roughly 200,000, reportedly) have been buried in Forest Home since it opened in 1876. So many, in fact, that there’s an old joke, quoted by Historical Society of Oak Park & River Forest board member Jean Guarino, that there are more dead than living people in Forest Park. And a significant number of them are either famous in their own right or connected to famous events in Chicago history — meaning the historical society has had no trouble manifesting some of these interesting characters in the form of actors every year for its fundraising cemetery walk.
After 24 years, though, past board president and event organizer Laurel McMahon decided it was time to try something new.
“‘Music of the Dead’ is going to be a very dramatic departure from anything we’ve done in the past,” McMahon said. “We’ve already told so many of the dramatic life stories of the people buried in Forest Home that this time we’re going to feature songs written about these people or about the tragic ways they died — or songs they actually wrote themselves.”
In the latter category, tour participants will certainly hear from Charles Chamberlain, author of “Illinois,” the Illinois state song. The third verse of the song is actually engraved on his tombstone.
They will also be entertained by popular songs of the vaudeville era presented by an actor portraying Frank June, owner of Oak Park’s former Warrington Opera House, and Grace Hayward, a popular singer who often appeared there. And, on a more highbrow note, they will be regaled by the operatic compositions of Alfredo Jannotta, a famed conductor and composer of the period, appearing with his wife Stella Skiff Jannotta — heir to the Jewel Tea Co. and patron of the arts.
“It certainly wouldn’t be appropriate if we didn’t feature the 100th anniversary of the Eastland Disaster in Chicago,” said McMahon, noting that songs commemorating Chicago’s worst maritime disaster would be performed near the graves of many who drowned that day in the Chicago River. McMahon also said folk songs commemorating victims of the Haymarket massacre would be performed at the Haymarket monument, including Joe Hill’s “The Rebel Girl.”
Despite the location and the proximity to Halloween, McMahon and Guarino emphasized that the Tale of the Tombstones tour is not in the least spooky — or even morbid.
“It’s a light entertainment for a Sunday afternoon,” said Guarino, who has volunteered for every tour since the beginning in 1991. “People often come as families and it’s not unusual for us to have groups of school children.”
“We aim for appreciation of history,” McMahon added. “That’s what takes us out there and we try to make it as entertaining and enjoyable as possible. Plus, it’s a wonderful time to walk through the cemetery with all the leaves turning. It’s really quite lovely.”
Tale of the Tombstones cemetery tour
walking tours depart periodically between 1 and 2 p.m. Oct. 18. Tours last 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
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Forest Home Cemetery, 863 Des Plaines Ave., Forest Park
$10 for Historical Society of Oak Park & River Forest members, $15 for nonmembers
708-848-6755; www.oprfhistory.org