As the first cemetery to be set up by the city administration on the outskirts of the city, the new cemetery in front of the dam gate was created on the site of the former ski jump, which was safe from flooding, and inaugurated in 1812. For the consecration, a cross dating from 1737 was erected by the former Carthusian churchyard, which was destroyed in the Second World War.
The city provided three fifths of the Martini parish and two fifths of the cathedral parish. The first burial took place on March 27, 1813. The burial ground received the name "Johannisfriedhof" only in 1816 at the suggestion of Pastor Bartels. It is reminiscent of the Johanniskirche on the other side of Dammstrasse, destroyed in the Schmalkaldic War in 1547.
The increasing occupancy led to the establishment of the Marienfriedhof as another urban cemetery in 1834. The Johannisfriedhof was closed on April 1, 1884 for new occupations. Family members could be buried in already reserved graves until 1930. After the final closure in 1930, the decision was made to convert it into an urban green area. During the air raid on March 22, 1945, the Johannisfriedhof was hit by three explosive devices, and numerous graves were destroyed. During the fundamental redesign in 1952, additional graves were leveled. A large number of historical grave monuments are still preserved today.
Source: Wikipedia