One of the most important parts of the grand, long-term vision of the site was the establishment of the Woodland Cemetery Association of Dayton. Its 5 member board of trustees, 4 members and a president, would manage the cemetery by auctioning plots, maintaining grounds, and protecting it from encroachment and vandalism. Woodland is a private, non-profit cemetery. Because of this, it charges for plots for its burials. The money is well spent, however, and ensures the long term care and longevity of the whole site, including personal care of each plot. The funds are used for maintenance of the gravestones, crypts, and monuments, while the majority goes to landscaping and grass cutting. With over 200 acres now under its care, Woodland’s grass-cutting task is enormous in the non-winter seasons. Woodland is following what the founders wanted, a cemetery that is, “for the plot holders and the citizens to enjoy.”[1]

The site of Woodland itself also has an interesting geologic history. About 20,000 years ago, a giant glacier covered the Miami Valley. The front edge of this glacier pushed from Lake Erie, collecting boulders, gravel, and clay. It finally stopped south of Cincinnati. As the glacier melted over thousands of years, this material, known as “drift” was deposited over the Dayton area. While the drift is relatively flat in the Miami Valley, there is a sharp increase in altitude approaching Woodland’s entrance. Here, the drift is about 100 feet thick. Looking further back into the site’s geologic history, around 400 million years ago, Ohio was covered by a shallow sea. As it dried up, deposits covered the Montgomery County area and formed a 4 to 5 feet thick limestone layer. This limestone, known as "Dayton Limestone". This stone was later used not only for many gravestones at Woodland, but also in the construction of the Old Court House in downtown Dayton.

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[1] Nancy Nerny and Sue Williams, "A Visit To Woodland Cemetery And Arboretum Educator’s Guidebook", http://www.Woodlandcemetery.Org/, last modified 2016, accessed December 8, 2016, http://www.woodlandcemetery.org/images/WLA-Educator-Guidebook.pdf.