Boston Freedom Trail

4. Granary Burying Ground

Boston, MA

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In 1660, the Granary Burying Ground in Massachusetts was established as Boston's third oldest cemetery. The graveyard is another site along the Freedom Trail. Situated on Tremont Street, the cemetery serves as a burial site for Revolutionary War-era patriots, including three signers of the Declaration of Independence, Paul Revere, and the five victims of the Boston Massacre. Although the cemetery has 2,345 graves, historians say that there are about 5,000 people buried here. This burial ground was established because the older King's Chapel Burying Ground located east of it was not large enough for Boston's growing population. Originally, the Granary Burial Ground was a part of the Boston Common, which covered the whole block. The buildings on the southwest side of the block became public property, only after two years of establishment, including the Granary and a prison. Before the Granary was acquired in 1737, the cemetery was known as the South Burying Ground. Since 1827, the Granary Burial Ground features an obelisk dedicated to Benjamin Franklin's parents and relatives. This structure is made out of granite from the Bunker Hill Monument quarry, replacing the original family gravestones. In 1830, effort was made to rename the place "Franklin Cemetery" to honor Benjamin Franklin and his family, but it did not change. Next to the Franklin obelisk is the oldest memorial for John Wakefield, who died on June 18, 1667 at 52. Wakefield, born 1615 in the Gravesend, County of Kent, England, immigrated to the colonies with his two brothers during 1635-1647. After settling in Boston, John started a coastal trading business with his brothers, Thomas and Richard, who both lived in Maryland. Wakfield died while he was working with a rope maker on cable in his boat. Other famous figures buried in the graveyard include John Phillips, the first mayor of Boston, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, John Endecott, the first Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, and Phillis Wheatley, a poet and a slave who was the first African-American woman to publish a book.