Old Holy Cross Cemetery

Situated along Kinzie Avenue and physically connected to Calvary Cemetery, Old Holy Cross carries a deep and enduring connection to Racine's early immigrant communities. The property's history traces back to 1852 and 1853, when Father Martin Kundig helped acquire a twelve-acre tract of land to serve the area's rapidly growing Catholic population.

From the beginning, the land served two distinct communities side by side. The eastern half of the shared parcel became Calvary Cemetery for English-speaking and Irish Catholic parishioners, while the western half was designated as St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery to serve the city's German Catholic community. As the local population expanded, the grounds grew with an additional six acres in 1898 and were formally incorporated in 1902 under Archbishop Frederick Xavier Katzer.

When the newer Holy Cross Cemetery opened on Highway 32 in Caledonia in 1929, which now serves as the location of our Main office, administrative operations shifted, and the historic Kinzie Avenue property naturally came to be known by locals as Old Holy Cross. On December 19, 1980, Old Holy Cross officially united with Calvary, Holy Family, and the newer Holy Cross under the Catholic Cemetery Association of Racine.

Today, Old Holy Cross remains a quiet and respectful landmark, preserving the heritage and resting place of the families who laid the foundation for Racine's early parish communities.