Longtime tour guide at Laurel Hill Cemetery introduces some of its permanent residents

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- For nearly 30 years, historian Tom Keels has been volunteering as a tour guide at Laurel Hill Cemetery, helping to bring stories of the dead back to life.

"You learn about the people who are buried here," says Keels.

In Laurel Hill East, he tells the story of David Rittenhouse, who he calls "one of the first great American scientists, along with Benjamin Franklin."

"We tell their stories and help them to be remembered," he says.

Keels got a degree in European history but says he became fascinated with Philadelphia's past after moving here in 1988.

"Laurel Hill kept meticulous archives for at least the first century of its existence," he says. "One of the fun things about digging the dirt, as it were, is that you can come up with these incredible stories."

He leads the cemetery's monthly 'Hot Spots & Storied Plots' tour.

"It's sort of like Laurel Hill's top 20," he says.

Graves of note include, General George Gordon Meade, who defeated Robert E. Lee at Gettysburg.

"Sarah Josepha Hale, who edited Godey's Lady's Book, got Thanksgiving declared a national holiday and wrote Mary Had a Little Lamb," he says.

Tour-goers also hear spooky stories, like the disappearance and death of Martha Drinnan. She was the oldest daughter of Joseph Drinnan, the first superintendent at Laurel Hill.

"To this day, nobody knows what happened to Martha," says Keels. "Martha is one of the mysteries of Laurel Hill."

He says there are a lot of Civil War soldiers and doctors buried there.

"We have a number of famous industrialists. They're all buried down by the river in what we call millionaire's row," he says. "Henry Disston once owned the largest saw manufactory in the world, and he has the largest mausoleum here."

Laurel Hill was founded on the Philadelphia side of the Schuylkill River in 1836 and expanded to the Lower Merion Township side 33 years later in Bala Cynwyd. It's now 265 total acres, with 78 acres on the east side and 187 acres to the west.

"Over 75,000 stories," says Nancy Goldenberg, Laurel Hill President and CEO.

Goldenberg says it's more than just a cemetery.

"We consider ourselves a sculpture garden," she says.

"I do a tour called 'Designing for the Dead,' which talks about the architecture," says Keels.

And it's an arboretum with over 6,000 trees and shrubs.

"This is how Victorians dealt with death, by trying to create an earthly paradise," says Keels. "It's this huge treasure trove of history that keeps offering up new information for us to discover and to share with other people."

Tom Keels | Laurel Hill Cemetery | 'Hot Spots & Storied Plots' Tour

Laurel Hill East
3822 Ridge Ave., Philadlephia, PA 19132

Laurel Hill West
225 Belmont Ave., Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004