A tower at the summit of Mount Auburn was proposed in 1831 and again in 1843 but construction was deferred until 1852.  Jacob Bigelow described its design and importance:

“The tower is sixty-two feet in height above the summit of Mount Auburn.  It is built on the general plan of some of the round towers of feudal ages and contains a gallery, battlements, Gothic windows, and a spiral staircase of stone.  The stones are smooth hammered on both sides, so that each stone make a part of both the inside and outside surface of the wall…  The tower of Mount Auburn serves further as a landmark, by which the place of the Cemetery is designated in the distance.  It identifies the spot which is already the resting place of thousands.  it is the centre to which mourning hears and eyes are daily turned, of those who would fain seek in the shadow for what remains on earth of their childredn and kindred.”

Bigelow was the intial designer of the observation tower and Gridley J. F. Bryant was responsible for construction drawings.  The tower’s name honor’s our country’s first president, George Washington.