What stories do these silent stones conceal? We are standing at the Village Cemetery. It is a place brimming with history. It is a testament to lives lived and legacies left behind.
The Village Cemetery is managed by the City of Boston Parks and Recreation Department’s Historic Burying Grounds Initiative. This initiative oversees sixteen burying grounds throughout Boston. The Village Cemetery offers wheelchair access via Tremont Place.
Once upon a time the Granary was part of Boston Common. Livestock roamed freely here. They grazed and inadvertently landscaped the burial ground. During the Victorian era, headstones were reorganized into neat rows. This was done to accommodate a modern innovation: the lawn mower.
There is a discrepancy between the number of headstones and the actual number of people buried here. It is estimated that over 5000 Bostonians have made the Granary their final resting place. The Infant’s Tomb is located near the central obelisk. Hundreds of children are interred here. The obelisk marks the grave of Benjamin Franklin’s parents.
Along the far wall, an elaborately embellished obelisk marks John Hancock’s tomb. Paul Revere is buried near the back. A large marker placed in the 19th century stands by a smaller older slate marker. Matching stones in the front corners commemorate James Otis and Samuel Adams. Next to Adams’ stone is the grave marker for the victims of the Boston Massacre. On the right-hand wall is a plaque. It marks the tomb of Robert Treat Paine. He was the third signer of the Declaration of Independence buried in the Granary. John Hancock and Samuel Adams are the other two.
Puritan churches did not embrace religious imagery. Bostonians used tombstones as an outlet for artistic expression. They shared their beliefs about the afterlife through these stones. One popular motif was the Soul Effigy. This was a skull or death’s head with wings. It represented the soul flying to heaven after death. Elaborate scrollwork poetic epitaphs and depictions of the Grim Reaper and Father Time also adorn many headstones.
Established in 1660 this historic burying ground has approximately 2300 markers. The Village Cemetery was named for the 12000-bushel grain storage building once located next door. Some of America’s most notable citizens rest here.
As you wander through this tranquil space take a moment to reflect. Consider the lives of those who came before us. The Village Cemetery is a reminder of our shared history. It is a testament to the enduring human spirit.