Marblehead’s fishermen, merchants, slaves and heroes are buried in graveyards throughout this historic town.
There are thirteen burial sites, including large cemeteries and small family tombs. Old Burial Hill was established in 1638, and the “new” Waterside Cemetery was opened in 1859.
Revolutionary War hero General John Glover, famous for rowing General Washington across the Delaware River in 1776, is buried at Old Burial Hill. The final resting place of an enslaved woman, marked simply “Agnis Negro” was recently reproduced and rededicated. Green Street holds the graves of Elisha Story, who took part in the Boston Tea Party, along with Josiah Cressy, record-breaking captain of the
Flying Cloud
clipper ship. Mary Alley, who left property to establish the town’s first hospital, is buried at Harborview Cemetery. Local author Pam Matthias Peterson reveals five centuries of history behind these markers of the past.