Thomas Staniland was admitted as a partner in Dayton Marble and Granite Works in 1865. The business was established in 1860 by H. Houghtelin. When Thomas became a partner, the company changed its name to Houghtelin & Staniland and continued under the direction of Mr. Houghtelin until his death in 1873. In 1875, Ira Crawford bought half the interest in the company and the name changed to Staniland & Crawford. The business did monumental work in all kinds of marble and granite and handled all sorts of marble, both foreign and domestic. Their granite work was all done at the quarries, except for the lettering. Mr. Staniland designed all the work and always personally supervised all of it. In December 1881, Mr. Crawford retired and Thomas continued the business on his own.

The Staniland mausoleum was built in a classic Greek temple style with four Ionic columns.
In funeral art, the garland draped on either side of “Thos Staniland” represents victory over death. The impressive mausoleum’s walls are large roughly chiseled limestone blocks.

Thomas Staniland was born in England in 1831 and died in Dayton on November 23, 1921 at the age of 90. He is located in Section 20 Lot 3278.

Woodland Cemetery, founded in 1841, is one of the nation’s five oldest rural garden cemeteries and a unique cultural, botanical and educational resource in the heart of Dayton, Ohio as you will see as you read through this new MostMetro.com series. Visit the cemetery and arboretum and take one of the many tours Woodland offers free of charge. Most of Dayton’s aviation heroes, inventors and business barons are buried at Woodland.

Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum is located at 118 Woodland Avenue off of Brown Street near the UD Campus. The Woodland Office is open Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm and Saturday 8 am to 12 pm. The Cemetery and Arboretum are open daily from 8 am to 6 pm. The Mausoleum is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm. For more information, call 937-228-3221 or visit the Woodland website.