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New York City turning public cemetery into public park

One million people are buried on Hart Island in the Bronx.
Credit: AP
In this May 23, 2018 photo, each white marker denotes a mass grave of about 150 people on Hart Island in New York. Officials let reporters get a rare look at Hart Island, the place that has served as New York City’s potter’s field for 150 years. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

BRONX, N.Y. — It’s the largest public cemetery in the United States.

One million people are believed to be buried there.

Now, New York City is turning it into a park.

Newsday reports Mayor Bill de Blasio signed a city law turning Hart Island over to the Department of Parks and Recreation to create a place for families to enjoy.

The one-square mile island cemetery in the Bronx has a very long history. According the New York Daily News, there are Civil War veterans buried there – alongside unmarked mass graves filled with homeless and other ‘unidentified’ people.

RELATED: Thousands of graves could be hidden beneath Hillsborough Avenue

Credit: AP
In this April 29, 2018 photo, a cross of wood and stones is seen on Hart Island in New York The island, which has served for 150 years as New York’s burial ground for the poor and nameless, like a traditional cemetery with manicured lawns or even headstones. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The newspaper reports the city’s Department of Corrections took control of Hart Island in 1968 and made it more difficult for people to visit.

The law signed by the mayor requires the Department of Transportation to increase ferry service to the island park in the Long Island Sound to make it easy for people to get there.

New York city still has information on its website for families trying to find loved ones buried on Hart Island.

Credit: AP
In this April 29, 2018 photo, a dilapidated building displays a warning sign on Hart Island in New York. Over the decades, Hart Island housed a Civil War prison, an asylum, a tuberculosis hospital, a jail and a missile base. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

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