Please note that all visitors assume all liability while guests of the Old City Cemetery.
April 2026
April 1-7: Cemetery Clean Up Week. Please remove any personal items from graves while we beautify our GraveGarden!
April 17: Death Doulas in Lee Reading Room 8:30 am – 9:30 am. For more information on the Death Doulas, please contact info@guidingsol.com.
April 21: Living Trees in a GraveGarden: An Earth Day Eve Walk. 11:00 am – 2:00 pm. A free event open to the public and brought to you by Old City Cemetery, the Blue Ridge Wildflower Society and the Virginia Native Plant Society! Tours of the Arboretum will be conducted at 11:30 am and 1:00 pm by the City of Lynchburg’s Urban Forester, Nick Meyer. Master Naturalists will be on site to share information about their organization. Plus a native plant sale! Free, but limited tickets are available for each Arboretum tour. Please click here to reserve your spot at either 11:30 or 1:00!
April 26: Holbrook Lyceum Inaugural Lecture. Join esteemed Historian and Author Dr. Clifton W. Potter for a robust discussion on the role of Lynchburg and Old City Cemetery in the Civil War. Find out how Blue and Gray Soldiers were seen the same by the eyes of God and their unique journey through Old City Cemetery, both permanent and temporary. 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm in the Chapel. Please RSVP to occ@gravegarden.org.
April 28: Antique Rose Festival and Heirloom Rose Sale (Online). Online orders open April 28. Over 900 roses and companion plants will be available. Pick up and In-Person Sale starts May 2. To preview the inventory, please visit https://occroses.redeaglesoftware.com/.
May 2026
May 2: Antique Rose Festival and Heirloom Rose Sale (In Person). 10:00 am – 3:00 pm in Old City Cemetery. To preview the inventory, please visit https://occroses.redeaglesoftware.com/.
May 11: Garden by the James Garden Club Private Tour. 6:30 pm in the Lee Reading Room.
May 13: Blue Ridge Garden Club Private Tour. Noon.
May 15: Mourning Tea hosted by Guiding Sol Doula Services. 8:30 am in the Lee Reading Room. Open to the public.
May 16: Hillside Garden Club Work Day and City of Roanoke private tour.
May 19: Lynchburg Tree Stewards in the Soldiers’ Section Private event. 9:00 am. Center at Belvidere Private Tour. 10:30 am.
May 20: United Way’s Day of Caring with ReMax and BWXT volunteers. 10:00 am – 4:30 pm
May 21: Rose Club of Bedford private tour. 10:00 am.
May 31: Cemetery Curiosities with Mark Day and Ashleigh Bruce. As part of our Holbrook Lyceum Series, join our Lead Historian and Archivist for a tour of Old City Cemetery’s archives and private collections. Special private tour of the Pest House and Hearse House. 2:00 pm in the Lee Reading Room at the Cemetery Center (350 Building). RSVP preferred to occ@gravegarden.org. (Full, no spots available)
June 2026
June 5: First Fridays at Old City Cemetery! Join Old City Cemetery at the Cemetery Center from 5:00 pm to 7:30 pm for tours of our private collections, which include artwork by notable area artists as well as 220 years of Lynchburg history. Tours of our Heirloom Roses will also be hosted, weather permitting. Refreshments will be served with donations appreciated.
June 11: Randolph College’s Museum Camp for High School Students. 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm. Please click here for registration information.
June 11: Marcotting with Sandy Fisher. 10:00 am – 1:00 pm. Limited to four participants per class. All tools, instructions, and supplies are provided. Participants will be given a choice of several heirloom roses to clone and can try their hand at marcotting three roses. They may keep 1 (one) of their successes. OCC will keep any other successful clones. Follow up dates to come cut and pot roses are July 9 (June 11 class) and July 18 (June 20 class.) $75/person. Snacks and beverages provided. Click here to register and pay.
June 20: Join Old City Cemetery at Miller Park for the Juneteenth Celebration. 11:00 am – 2:00 pm.
June 20: Marcotting with Sandy Fisher (SOLD OUT). 10:00 am – 1:00 pm. Limited to four participants per class. All tools, instructions, and supplies are provided. Participants will be given a choice of several heirloom roses to clone and can try their hand at marcotting three roses. They may keep 1 (one) of their successes. OCC will keep any other successful clones. Follow up date to come cut and pot roses is July 18 (June 20 class.) $75/person. Snacks and beverages provided. Click here to register and pay.
June 22: As part of the Holbrook Lyceum Lecture Series, join the Legacy Museum of African American History, the Juneteenth Coalition, and Old City Cemetery for a panel discussion on the history of Race Relations in Lynchburg…Where We Were, Where We Are, and Where We Need to Go. Area civil rights leaders Shaun Spencer-Hester, JoAnn Martin, and Nat Marshall will offer their unique insights and experiences. 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm at the Chapel in Old City Cemetery with a reception to follow in the Comfort House. Please RSVP to occ@gravegarden.org.
July 2026
July 2: Old City Cemetery is pleased to announce it will provide a pair of 45 minute tours (10:00 am and 11:00 am), focused on individuals buried within our grounds, as a 250th anniversary event on Thursday the 2nd of July. The tours will be led by our cemetery historian who will weave the lives of six individuals into the historic narrative of our nation’s past. Over the course of the tour you will be made familiar with men and women, both famous and unknown, who made Lynchburg their home and left their mark on the city. $15/adults. $10/children under 16. (SOLD OUT)
July 18: As part of the Holbrook Lyceum Lecture Series, join author Wyatt Golden for a presentation and book signing on his new biography of Colonel Charles Lynch titled “A Zealous and Active Patriot.” 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm in the Chapel. Please RSVP to occ@gravegarden.org.
August 2026
August 21: Mourning Tea with Guiding Sol Doula Services. Enjoy a peaceful morning of tea, conversation, and connection with others in our community. Please RSVP to info@guidingsol.com.
August 22: Old City Cemetery Wedding Expo 10:00 am – 12:30 pm at the Chapel and Comfort House. Want to attend? RSVP to occ@gravegarden.org.
August 22: Holbrook Lyceum Lecture Series, join Dr. Charles Driscoll for a presentation on Dr. John J. Terrell (1829-1922) and his innovations in the medical treatment. 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm at the Chapel in Old City Cemetery. Please RSVP to occ@gravegarden.org.
August 27: Old City Cemetery is pleased to announce it will provide a second pair of 45 minute tours (10:00 am and 11:00 am), focused on individuals buried within our grounds, as another 250th anniversary celebration. The tours will be led by our cemetery historian who will weave the lives of 5 individuals into the historic narrative of our nation’s past. Over the course of the tour you will be made familiar with men and women, both famous and unknown, who made Lynchburg their home and left their mark on the city. $15/adults. $10/children under 16. Please click here to purchase tickets.
September 2026
September 8-12: Old City Cemetery Fall Plant Sale. Heirloom Roses, Companion Plants and more! Online sales September 8-10 and In-person sales September 11-12 (Friday 8-3 and Saturday 9-1).
September 26: Join Ashleigh Bruce from 12-2 for our living history program, ‘Sewing Through the Centuries,’ for a discussion on the history of sewing and embroidery, where you can also create your own embroidery sampler! Through the art of the needle, you will get to experience a bit of the historic importance behind this skill. Sewing supplies will be provided. $50/person with limit of 10 participants. Please click here to sign up.
October 2026
October 1 – 23 19th Annual Candlelight Tours with Endstation Theatre Company. Click here for tickets.
October 31: Midnight in the Grave Garden: Ever want to spend the stroke of midnight in an historic cemetery? Now’s your chance! This Halloween, enter the cemetery after dark… if you dare. From 7:30 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., Old City Cemetery invites you to Midnight in the Grave Garden, a chilling Halloween experience where Lynchburg’s past takes on a darker side. Wander among centuries-old graves, uncover eerie stories from Lynchburg’s history, and discover what happens when the normally-locked gates stay open long after nightfall. Expect spooky fun, unsettling history, and a few surprises lurking in the shadows. Gather your bravest friends and spend Halloween night where not all history rests in peace. $99/person. Festive food and beverage included, though no BOOOOOze. Click here for tickets. Limited tickets available!
December 2026
December 19: Wreaths Across America Ceremony at the Chapel. Noon. To sponsor a Wreath, please click here.
