Monday, January 26, 2009

Rucker Tomb

The Rucker Tomb is a 30-foot granite pyramid located in the Evergreen Cemetery in Everett, Washington. It was built in 1907 by members of the Rucker family. The Ruckers were among the founding families of Everett. They also owned the Everett-Monte Cristo Railway. There are 22 crypts in the pyramid. About half are occupied. Members of the Rucker family still live in the area.

The giant mausoleum cost $30,000 to build, which was a fortune at the time. The door is four inches thick and made of granite brought from Maine. The following link is the source of this information--

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080718/NEWS01/78700691

When I moved to Everett with my family in the early 1960s, I was told about the Rucker Tomb by a couple of teenage friends who had lived in Everett all their lives. They said I had to see it. The tomb caught my interest-- what other city had a pyramid, a stone crypt, a monument honoring the decedents of a royal family? So, I saw it. As it turned out, the mystique was better than the real thing. Yet, even adults and movie stars can be intrigued.

In 1995 Evergreen Cemetery was the location for a scene in the movie "Assasins" which starred Sylvester Stallone and Antonio Banderas. The movie includes a shoot-out scene at the graveyard. The story is about an experienced hitman (Stallone), who wants out of the business, and the younger assassin (Banderas) who is trying to kill min.


Sadly, in 2008 vandals maliciously caused $12,000 in damages to Evergreen Cemetery by destroying headstones and in trying unsuccessfully to enter the Rucker Tomb. According to The Herald, the granite face plate was shattered and a handle on one of the coffins inside was removed. What kind of ghouls were these?




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