Founded in 1849, Bellefontaine Cemetery is an early American example of the rural cemetery style, a movement which sought to establish peaceful resting places in park-like settings outside of urban centers. Added in 2014, Wildwood Valley Garden is a commemorative garden situated around the existing Columbarium, between Cypress and Cascade Lakes. The garden design builds upon the vision of the 2012 Master Plan, with a composition of diverse and colorful plantings which will invite return visits as the garden changes with the seasons. Tree groves, perennial and shrub beds, prairie wildflower drifts, and wetland emergent plants highlight Missouri’s native landscape communities, lending to the garden’s strong sense of place.

Built features provide the framework for the garden vision. A naturalized stream meanders through a series of stone riffles and weirs, traversing 20 feet of elevation change over its 600 foot course, connecting the two lakes. Meanwhile, a winding path takes visitors past curved stone-clad memorial walls to overlooks and intimate seating nooks.

The stream is a sequence of sensory experiences, starting at the bubbling spring above Sunrise Pool and cascading over a series of falls below the pool. The stream then becomes a tranquil flow over gentle riffles as it bends around the Columbarium before tumbling over a final set of falls into Sunset Pool. The accessible path engages the stream along its course with numerous stone bridge crossings and overlooks, connecting Sunrise and Sunset Pools through the Columbarium. Stone-clad site walls provide seating and frame burial and garden areas, while engraved stone panels accommodate memorial messages throughout.