Known as the resting place of Boston's most famous sons. At least 3 of the signers of the Declaration of Independence are buried here. It was established in 1660, and named after the grain storage building next door. At one time it was part of the "Common", so the grazing animals took care of the growth of the manicuring of the lawn.
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| Table Top Graves |
There were three sections. The section with upright headstones, table top, and tombs. The upright headstones are not so neatly in rows. At one time many of the stones washed down the hill in a flooding rain and were just brought back up and placed anywhere. So the people are there, just not necessarily where their headstone is located. The table tops were crypts under the ground. The tombs were under the buildings outside the perimeter of the burying grounds.
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| Embellished stones with skull and wings on left; skull and cross bones on right. |
Interestingly the tombstones are somewhat embellished. The Puritan churches did not believe in religious icons, so the tombstones reflected the beliefs of the afterlife. Many have what is known as the Soul Effigy, a skull with a wing on each side that represents the soul flying to heaven after death. We saw lots of these! There are elaborate scroll work, poetic epitaphs, images of the Grim Reaper and Father time on many of the stones.
Dignitaries laid to rest here include:
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| John Hancock Grave Site |
- Samuel Adams* - who had the victims of the Boston Massacre buried in his family tomb
*Signers of the Declaration of Independence
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