Established on March 15, 1838, and dedicated on July 13, 1839, it is noted for the large number of historical figures interred in its grounds as well as many prominent Baltimore-area families.

It retained the name Green Mount when the land was purchased from the heirs of Baltimore merchant Robert Oliver.

A Baltimore City Landmark plaque at the entrance reads: Green Mount Cemetery was dedicated in 1839 on the site of the former country estate of Robert Oliver.

Nearly 65,000 people are buried here, including the poet Sydney Lanier, philanthropists Johns Hopkins and Enoch Pratt, Napoleon Bonaparte's sister-in-law Betsy Patterson, John Wilkes Booth, and numerous military, political and business leaders.In addition to John Wilkes Booth, two other conspirators in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln are buried here, Samuel Arnold and Michael O'Laughlen.

It is common for visitors to the cemetery to leave pennies on the graves of the three men; the one-cent coin features the likeness of the president they successfully sought to murder.