Forest Park's Cemetery Season Now Runs on a 4 p.m. Clock

Every October, Forest Park's calendar leans on its cemeteries. Local history groups give tours among the headstones and hold story readings in a mausoleum. The Chamber runs a race with caskets on wheels. This year the season runs on a tighter clock. Since August, the gates at Forest Home Cemetery on Des Plaines Avenue close at 4 p.m.

The cemetery said the change was a security measure. It also means every cemetery event this fall takes place in daylight, and any visit to Forest Home on a weekday has to happen during working hours.

The gate that moved to 4 p.m.

The Forest Park Review reported on Sept. 4 that Forest Home had set visiting hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. after several thefts and acts of vandalism. That's according to Dan Fitts, the cemetery's executive director. The paper tied the timing to a recent string of cemetery thefts in the area. In August, brass-door thefts at cemeteries in Forest Park and nearby towns led to arrests.

Before the change, plot buyers had been told they could visit from dawn to dusk. In the Review's account, that can mean as late as 8 p.m. in August. So at the height of summer, the window shrank by about four hours.

A petition created Aug. 20 asks the cemetery to stay open until at least 7 p.m., or to set up controlled access for plot owners. It had more than 630 signatures as of Sept. 4. On Oct. 12, the petition page showed 1,009. The cemetery's position, as Fitts explained to the Review, is that individual access isn't operationally feasible. He added:

"We recognize the importance of families being able to visit loved ones entrusted to our care and continue to provide access seven days per week."

Those were the hours as of the Review's Sept. 4 report. Until you see an update, plan any Forest Home visit, whether you're visiting a grave, walking the grounds, or showing it to a guest, as a daytime trip.

Fitting the Tale of the Tombstones inside the window

The biggest cemetery event of the season is also the one that fits the new hours most neatly. The Oak Park River Forest Museum's 35th annual "Tale of the Tombstones" walk takes place at Forest Home on Sunday, Oct. 18, from noon to 4 p.m. In keeping with the nation's 250th anniversary, this year's theme is "American Movements." The museum's description covers literal moves that brought people to the area from the other side of the country.

The tours are timed with room to spare before the gate closes. Groups leave the main gate every 10 minutes from noon to 1:30 p.m., and each tour lasts about an hour and a half. So the last group should finish around 3 p.m., about an hour before the gates close.

What you need before you go:

• Address: 863 Des Plaines. Tours depart from the main gate.
• Price: $25 general admission, or $20 for museum members.
• Registration: Required in advance. The museum says unregistered visitors may be turned away.
• Where to buy: The museum's online store. For member-price tickets, the listing gives 708-848-6755 and [email protected].
• Availability: When we checked, the store listed tickets in stock with some time slots still open, but that can change quickly.

Registration matters more this year than in a year with open gates. With a set tour schedule and a hard 4 p.m. close, you can't show up late and wander around on your own afterward.

The mausoleum became a venue first

Even before the walk, Forest Home had become a place for scheduled programs. On Sept. 20, the Forest Park Historical Society hosted "Movie at the Mausoleum." Tour guide and author Amy Binns-Calvey shared the history of Forest Home and the Lehmann Mausoleum.

Then on Oct. 10, the Historical Society held "Spooky Stories at the Cemetery" at the Lehmann Mausoleum. The Forest Park Public Library and the Forest Park Arts Alliance were partners, and readers shared personal, classic, and modern spooky stories.

Both events are over, but they show how Forest Park's cemetery season works. History groups, the library, and the arts community use the grounds as a stage, on a set date, with an organizer in charge. The 4 p.m. gate pushes the season even further in that direction. Hosted events are now the easiest way to spend real time in Forest Home.

Not every cemetery in town has a fall program. Waldheim Cemetery Co.'s calendar lists no events from Oct. 11 through Oct. 31. The site also notes that its information covers only Waldheim Cemetery Co., not every cemetery in the area known as Jewish Waldheim.

Six days later, the caskets run on Beloit

After the history walk comes the village's lighter take on the same theme. The Chamber's 14th annual Casket Races are on Saturday, Oct. 24, on Beloit Avenue between Madison and Adams. The listed address is 7500 Madison St. Watching is free, and racing costs $40 per team.

The format is simple. Under the 2026 rules, each team has four runners pushing one helmeted "Ghost" rider, and everyone on a team must be at least 18. Trophies go to first, second, and third place, the funniest or creepiest casket, and the team that finishes "dead last." In a 2019 Forest Park Review story, Chamber director Laurie Kokenes is credited with bringing the event to Forest Park in 2012.

The Chamber's page puts the start at 11 a.m., with Trick or Treat on Madison right after, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. The Chamber's own documents give two different schedules, though. The event page lists team check-in from 9 to 9:30 a.m., while the race rules PDF says 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. One section of the PDF also puts the first race at 10 a.m. If you're racing, confirm with the Chamber before race day. If you're watching, getting there before 10 a.m. covers both versions.

Put together, the Oct. 18 walk and the Oct. 24 race make up Forest Park's cemetery October. The first is a serious history program inside the gates, and the second is a joke on Beloit. Both happen in daylight, which matches the new hours.

The rest of the calendar, in date order

The rest of Forest Park's fall calendar, from this week through Nov. 20:

1. Friday, Oct. 16: Halloween Trivia Night, listed by the Park District of Forest Park.
2. Sunday, Oct. 18: "Tale of the Tombstones" at Forest Home, noon to 4 p.m., registration required.
3. Saturday, Oct. 24: Casket Races on Beloit, then Trick or Treat on Madison from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
4. Friday, Oct. 30: Fall Storytime Party and Concert with Little Miss Ann at the Forest Park Public Library, 11 a.m. to noon.
5. Saturday, Oct. 31: Trunk-or-Treat in the Park District parking lot.
6. Saturday, Nov. 7: The Chamber's Dorothy Gillian Fall Wine Walk on Madison Street, 1 to 5 p.m. Check-in is at Forest Park Bank, 7348 Madison, and tickets are $55. The event page lists "16+ locations," and the Chamber's events calendar lists 17 tasting stops.
7. Friday, Nov. 20: Holiday Movie Trivia Night, listed by the Park District, 6 to 7:30 p.m.

None of the evening events on this list are listed for cemetery grounds, and the Wine Walk ends at 5 p.m. on Madison. If you want time in Forest Home this fall, your options are the Oct. 18 walk or a weekday or weekend visit before 4 p.m.

At Cynthia Gajewski, we follow the Forest Park calendar the way our neighbors do, down to which gates close when and which race-day schedule to trust. If you're thinking about what life looks like around Forest Home and Madison Street, or how a Forest Park home fits into weekends like these, we'd love to talk it through with you. Let's Find Your Perfect Home Together.