[5][a] By the mid-1840s, growing settlement in the area left the Franklinton, North, and East cemeteries too small to accommodate more burials.

[6] On February 24, 1848, the Ohio General Assembly enacted a law providing for the incorporation of cemetery associations by 10 or more people.

The group secured a charter from the Ohio General Assembly on March 23, 1849, incorporating the "Green Lawn Cemetery of Columbus".

[9][10] A public meeting was held on July 12,[3] and a committee of 11 local leaders appointed to select a site and draft articles of incorporation.

[11] The board sought a site of about 50 to 100 acres (20 to 40 ha) of gently rolling land well-covered in trees and shrubs.

The bloom itself was carved on the plinth on which the slab stood, and was inscribed "Olive, wife of William G. Deshler, age 19".

[19] In February 1864, the trustees of Green Lawn Cemetery offered to exchange burial lots with those individuals who still retained plots at North Graveyard.

Green Lawn intended to build homes on the site of the abandoned North Graveyard and lease them in order to generate income.

In addition, the Columbus, Chicago and Indiana Central Railway sought to condemn a portion of the burying ground for a railroad right of way.

The two offers generated extensive litigation, as lotholders sought to prevent the disinterment of loved ones and those who had deeded land to the city tried to regain title to it.

[27][28] Two years later, the association began a campaign to raise funds for the design and erection of a veterans memorial in that section.

[27] Another four lots in section 28 were purchased in January 1886,[28] and in March 1886 the Ohio General Assembly authorized the commissioners of Franklin County to levy a tax to aid in the construction of the memorial.

The perpetrators were never caught, and the cemetery extended fences to prevent after-hours vehicular entry and contract random security patrols.

In the wake of the vandalism, cemetery volunteers and instructors at Columbus State Community College created a geographic information system capstone course.

[30] Starting in 2020, a vandal damaged nearly 100 trees over a period of several months during mornings shortly after the grounds opened.

[needs update] Green Lawn officials had long desired to build a chapel at the cemetery ever since its formation in 1848.

Design and construction were put off until enough funds had been raised to erect a substantial building of excellent materials and workmanship.

The fundraising effort neared completion in 1899, at which time the board selected architect Frank L. Packard to design the chapel.

Packard was a natural choice, as he had advised the board for several years on the landscape design and aesthetics of the cemetery.

[33][h] The main entry doors are bronze and flanked by Ionic columns, while the interior floor is a geometric pattern of black and white tile.

[33] The chapel contains two murals (depicting Truth and Wisdom), a number of mosaics, and windows of both leaded and stained glass.

[32] The chapel was renovated, a west wing with service room and bathrooms added, and a carillon with bells constructed in 1963.

[25] In 1999, the Audubon Society recognized Green Lawn Cemetery as part of the Lower Scioto River Ohio "Important Bird Area".

[47] Built at a cost of about $80,000 to $100,000 ($2,700,000 to $3,400,000 in 2023 dollars), the Neoclassical style tomb had a granite foundation, interior and exterior walls of white Vermont marble, and two Ionic columns on each side of the main entrance.

Hayden wanted the construction of the mausoleum to be a surprise for his family, so Packard refused to tell the press or cemetery officials who commissioned the work until it was completed.