Hours

The Rural Cemetery is open to the public daily from sunrise to sunset. Click here to learn about Special Events and Tours scheduled throughout the year.

Dogs

All dogs must be on a leash at all times.

Maps of Cemetery

• Burial Plot Map
• Self-Guided Tour Brochure

Directions & Parking

The Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery is located at 1600 Franklin Avenue. There are entrances at Monroe Street and at MacDonald Avenue. Parking is on neighboring streets or near the Town and Country shopping center.

Directions From Highway 101

• Take the Steele Lane exit.
• Go east on Steele Lane. Steele Lane becomes Lewis Road at Mendocino Avenue.
• Turn Right on Franklin Avenue
• Just past the Memorial Park Cemetery, take a half-left turn to stay on Franklin. The Rural Cemetery will be on your left.
• Click here to view in Google Maps.

Things to See

Memorial & Habitat Garden

In 2001, a small group of dedicated volunteers established a National Wildlife Federation Certified Backyard Wildlife Habitat garden at the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery to serve as a memorial garden, where stones could be placed commemorating those whose burial site is elsewhere or unknown. The garden design focuses on native, drought-tolerant plants that attract native bees and butterflies. It has also been designated an official Monarch Sanctuary. Click here for a list of the hundreds of plants in the Memorial and Habitat Garden. All but three are natives to California and most are native to Sonoma County. Click here for answers to Frequently Asked Questions about the Habitat Garden.

Memorial Rose Grove

The Memorial Rose Grove, created by the Cemetery's volunteer Rose Brigade in the meadow to the north of the Franklin Avenue entrance, is dedicated to the memory of unknowns believed to be buried there and to the memory of victims of the 1906 earthquake, many of whom are buried throughout the cemetery and in a mass grave at the foot of meadow. The grove contains a hundred vintage roses. Click here to learn about the legendary White Moss Rose and Historical Tea Rose, and to see a list of rose categories found at the Rural Cemetery.