Brian Lera on WNC, we'll close the show today by shedding some light

on a place in New York City that many of us have never visited.

And I wonder if any of you listening right now

have any experience with it.

We know our city consists of a few islands, Randall's Island, Roosevelt Island, etc.

But what about Hart Island?

Off the coast of the Bronx exists an island you can only get to by

ferry, but for many years it was totally inaccessible to the public. Why? It hosts

the largest mass graveyard in the United States.

Now, not many of us like to think about what happens to us after we die,

but we've got a few options.

Many people have been

choose cremation, or they're buried in family plots

in traditional graveyards.

Lately, people have been opting

to turn their remains into trees, perhaps

to symbolize the cycle of life or because they're looking for an

environmentally positive alternative.

Futures to be buried in a place like Hart Island, yet it hosts the remains of millions of New Yorkers who could not be identified,

fell ill during pandemics like COVID-19 or age or whose families could not afford an alternative.

While those who call Hart Island their final wrestling place

are one of a hundred or so in an unmarked grave,

...