USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground : with historical sketches, January 1, 1882 > Part 3
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
Grant, the temperance lecturer. As said before, there are no restrictions with regard to its use; a dwelling-house or a black- smith's shop could be erected on the spot, and the right of way across the cemetery is construed by common law to mean a path broad enongh for cart-wheels to pass over.
A
COPP'S HILL BURIAL GROUND.
There are within this cemetery two hundred and thirty tombs, two of which belong to the city. The one near Charter Street was fitted and prepared for children in June, 1833. In May, of the same year, fifty dollars was appropriated by the city authorities toward purchasing trees for ornamenting the grounds, and from that date the whole appearance of the Hill
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
began to change and resume its ancient popularity. Thosa trees have all been removed, and others, of a more appropriate character, numbering one hundred and eighty, have taken their places, which make a very agreeable shade to the visitor on a sultry day, as well as to the children who come to play. The Hill is visited not only by residents of the city, but by people from all parts of the globe.
In 1838, new avenues and walks were laid out; grave-stones were removed for that purpose, thus affording opportunities for pleasant promenades, which are by no means neglected. Con- siderable care was used when laying out the paths to place the tomb-stones as near as possible to their original positions. Until within a few years the Hill has been very much neglected, and boys have been allowed to run wild through the grounds six months in the year. No one having charge during the win- ter months, the West and North End Boys would meet and imitate the North- and South-Enders on Pope Day, and it fre- quently required a squad of police to drive them away ; but this has changed. The Board of Health - to whom has been given the charge of the cemetery - have appointed a Superintendent to take charge of the grounds during the whole year, because of the numerous complaints made by neighbors and old residents of the North End. They have also concreted the down grade paths, which was very much needed, as the rain had gullied them in some places to the depth of a foot, and in others had laid bare the tops of the tombs built beneath them. The ap- pearance of the grounds has very much improved.
The present Superintendent was appointed in April, 1878, since which time he has recovered twenty-two tomb-stones belonging to this ground ; - two on chimney tops, two covering drains, one in the cellar of a house on Charter Street, one on Commercial Street, and the balance over the openings of tombs. A tombstone with the following inscription was discovered four feet below the surface, when widening Commercial Street, at the foot of Lime Alley : "Elizabeth Boone, aged 2 years, Dyed ye 13 October 1677."
The Superintendent, in December, 1878, ou opening an old tomb, discovered a headstone which reads thus : "Recompense Wadsworth, A. M. First Master of ye Grammar Free School at ye North End of Boston. Aged about 24 years; Died June ye 9th, 1713." The tomb had not been opened for eighteen
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
years, and the undertaker who last closed it, instead of using the old plank covering, which was probably rotten, and rather than renew it, took standing grave-stones to close the entrance before filling in the top earth. On searching the records the following entries were found: "March 11, 1711-12. At Town Meeting - Voted, That there be a Free Grammar School at the North End of Boston; and Voted, That Captain Thomas Hutchinson, Colonel Adams Winthrop, Mr. John Ruck, Captain Edward Martyn, and Mr. Samuel Greenwood be the committee relating to building said schoolhouse. Voted, That the select- men be requested to procure a suitable master for said school. March 9, 1712-13. Voted, That it be left with the selectmen, and they are empowered to introduce Mr. Recompense Wads- worth at the North, and to allow him sixty pounds for one year." (This building was erected on Bennett Street in 1713. Master Wadsworth died six months after receiving his appointment). Four more head-stones were used to make the tomb entrance secure.
The oldest stone (referred to on page 26), is to be found near the Shaw monument, and was erected in memory of the grandchildren of William Copp. Upon it are the following in- scriptions :
DAVID SON TO DAVID
COPP & OBEDIENCE HIS
WIFE AGED 2 WEEKS
DYED DEC 22
1661
THOMAS, SON TO DAVID
COPP & OBEDIENCE HIS WIFE RS
AGED 2 YEARS & 3 QUARTE
DYED JULY YE 25 1678
The next oldest stands near the centre of the Hill. It was found in a tomb many years ago, and, although chipped upon its edge, these inscriptions can be easily read ;
MARY RIND
WILLIAM RIND
AGED * * *
AGED ABOUT 1 YEAR DYED
DIED YE 15 OF AUGUST
YE 14 OF FEBRUARY
1662
1666
THE CHILDREN OF ARTHUR AND JANE RIND.
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
But these slabs are not the oidest in the cemetery. There is one finished on the edges with ornamental curves and crowned with two cherubs and the Angel of Death, which is sacred to the memory of Grace Berry, wife of Thomas Berry, who died in Plymouth, May 17, 1625, aged about 58 years ; and whose body was removed to Boston iu the year 1659, when Copp's Hill was first opened as a place of burial. The stone is supposed to be the oldest in New England. It bears a coat of arms, and is marked with the contact of British bullets fired at it during the Revolutionary War, when it was used as a target .* Ou the highest point of the Hill is a stone bearing the name of John Milk, for whom Milk Street was named. He died in 1756, at the age of about 47 years. Near by rest the remains of George Worthylake, one of the first keepers of Boston light, with those of his wife and daughter. All three were drowned while sail- ing in Boston harbor, on Sunday, November 3d, 1718. Upon a triple stone, of very curious design and elaborate workmanship, their deaths are recorded. His age was 45 years, his wife, Ann, 40, and the daughter, Ruth, 13. Franklin, who was at this time apprenticed to his brother to learn the printing art, composed and printed a ballad on this sad event, called The Lighthouse Tragedy, which had an extensive sale. His father so severely criticised his production that he never again attempted versifica- tion. Not far away, down the northern slope of the yard, is the tomb of Chief Justice Parker, a plain brick vault covered with a heavy brown stone slab. Near by is the monument of Major Samuel Shaw, erected by Robert G. Shaw, his grandson, in 1848. Upon this shaft is inscribed a record of the events in the life and career of the Major. It states that he served through the Revolution as an officer; that on the 22d of Feb- ruary, 1784, he sailed from New York to Canton in the ship Empress of China, as supercargo and part owner; that he was
* There has been considerable doubt as to the correctness of the date on this stone. In the month of July, 1878, an old gen- tleman from the West, with his daughter and granddaughter, visited the Hill for the purpose of finding the tomb-stone of one of his ancestors. In their possession was a memorandum book yellow with age. On the first page was a fac simile drawing of this stone with the coat of arms (without the bullet marks), and on the first two pages was an exact inscription of that on the Grace Berry slab, with a foot-note, stating when it had been re- moved from Plymouth. No record of Grace Berry's death can be found at City Hall.
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
appointed by Washington Consul to China, and that he died in 1794. Between this shaft and the Grant family tomb is a stone a few inches in height and so sunk in the ground that it almost escapes notice. It bears the name of Goodeth (Judith ?) Copp, who died on the 25th of May, 1670, at the age of 75 years. She was the wife of William Copp, for whom the Hill was named. While this memorial of her former existence still remains, and seems able to defy the elements for centuries, that which re- cords the decease of her husband has disappeared, although stones sacred to the memory of other members of the Copp family can be seen in different places in the cemetery.
The most noted tomb in the ground, and the one almost in- variably the first inquired for by people from other States and even from Europe, is that of Reverend COTTON MATHER. It is near the Charter Street gate, and is a simple vault of brick upon which rests a heavy slab of brown stone into which two separate squares of slate have been set - one of recent date and the other bearing THE MATHER TOMB. marks of age, with the fol- owing inscription, which is almost illegible:
THE REVEREND DOCTORS INCREASE, COTTON, & SAMUEL MATHER were intered in this Vault. 'Tis the Tomb of our Father's MATHER - CROCKER'S I DIED Augt 27th 1723 Æ 84
C DIED FEB 13th 1727 Æ 65
S DIED June 27th 1785 Æ 79
In addition to these clergymen, the vault contains the re- mains of many of their descendants. (Cotton Mather was three times married; by his first two wives he had fifteen children). It was last opened about fifteen years ago, when one of the Crocker family was deposited under its arch; the relics of these ancient worthies were found mingled in great confusion. There
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
is an air of quiet decay about the spot that is very suggestive of the transitory nature of all that is mortal. Above it large trees cast a semi-gloom which discourages the growth of grass and shrubbery, and the tooth of time has gnawed deeply into both brick and stone. It is surrounded by a neat iron fence, stone curbing has been placed underneath, and the ground inside the fence newly sodded. By the mutations of family descent the tomb is now owned by Miss Rebecca E. Parker, who wishes to maintain it in as good condition as possible, and do nothing to destroy the sacred character of the property. This and the Ellis, Grant, Jarvis, and Dupee, are the only tombs thus cared for, as far as is known, during the past forty years. The famous Napoleon willow (grown from a slip brought by Captain Joseph Leonard from the tree at the grave of Napoleon at St. Helena, and transplanted here by Roland G. Ellis of Boston, in 1844), now shades another burial plat, and covers the monument and tomb of the Ellis family at the Charter Street gate.
There are several stones on the main walk, near the front gate, bearing the name of Seward, one of them commemorating Major Thomas Seward, an officer of the Continental Army, who died in 1800, at the age of 60. Upon this is carved a cinerary urn, a cannon with cannon-balls, and a setting sun. Another slab is ornamented with the Angel of Death bearing an hour- glass and carrying a scythe. Near by is a broken stone with the following inscription :
JAMES SEWARD grandson of James & Catharine Seward obiit Sept 22d 1792 Ætat 6 months. He bore a lingering sickness with patience, and met the King of Terrors with a smile.
On the slab covering the vault of Major John Ruddock, Esq., who died in 1772, at the foot of a long record of his work and worth, were once the words -
" Time may efface this monumental stone, But time nor malice can his worth dethrone For villains living oft may buy a name, But virtue only swells posthumous fame."
They contain a prophecy that has been fulfilled. A few indentations are all that remain of the words of praise and affection, nor would any one know what they had been, had they not been copied, many years since, by the late Thomas Bridgman.
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
Toward the north-west angle of the enclosure is a stone in commemoration of Captain Thomas Lake. The inscription is as follows:
CAPT THOMAS LAKE AGED 61 YEERES AN EMINENTLY FAITHFULL SERVANT OF GOD & ONE OF A PUBLIC SPIRIT WAS PERFIDIOVSLY SLAIN BY ye INDIANS AT KENNIBECK AVGVST ye 14th 1676
& HERE INTERRED THE 13 OF MARCH FOLLOWING
A curious reminder of the fate that overtook the worthy captain is a slit sawn deeply into the heavy slate, into which the bullets taken from his body had been poured after they had been melted. Sacreligious knives have hewn away the metal, so that there are only faint traces remaining; but one can easily determine with what material the fissure had once been filled. Captain Lake was Commander of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company in the years 1662 and 1674. Among other Past Commanders interred in this ground may be mentioned the following: Captain Ralf Hart, Colonel John Carnes, Captain Caleb Lyman and Captain Edward Martyn.
In the same locality is a stone- a huge block of slate, smooth on one of its sides, inscribed thus:
NICHOLAS VPSALL AGED ABOVT 70 YEARS DYED YE * * OF AVGVST 1666
Among the early citizens of Boston he was a man of note, mainly for his charitable disposition. Because he opposed the course pursued towards the Quakers, and did all he could to alleviate the distress of those of that persuasion who suffered persecution, he in turn became a martyr. His crowning offence was bribing the keeper of Boston jail to supply with food two Quaker women who were imprisoned, and would otherwise have starved to death. For this he was fined £20 (no inconsid-
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
erable amount two centuries ago) and banished from the colony. He went to Rhode Island and remained six years, until Governor Endicott had ceased to rule. Returning to Boston, he furnished a room in his house for the free use of the Quakers, and many were the Friends who enjoyed his hospitality. He was pos- sessed of quite a large property, his estate covering, in 1637, the territory now bounded by Hanover and Richmond streets and the old water line, joining the terminus of the two thorough- fares. On this territory was his house, long known as the "Old Red Lyon " inn. His name stands twenty-third on the list of the original members of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company. He was also a member of the church and, as might be expected, exerted considerable influence over the affairs of the infant town.
In the north-west angle of the ground is the tomb of Ed- mund Hartt, builder of the old frigate Constitution. The spot is marked by a plain white stone, upon which is simply the name of him who sleeps below. Near by is the vault formerly owned by Christopher Gore, who was Governor of Massachu- setts in 1810. On the other side of the walk is the monument of Charles Jarvis, who died in 1807, at the age of 59. This me- morial informs us that he was "a Physician, a Statesman, a Patriot, and an honest Man, whose dignified Deportment, sub- lime Eloquence, unbounded Philanthropy, and other Virtues endeared his Memory to his fellow-citizens." Upon the west- ern rise of the hill is a stone erected to the memory of Deacon Shem Drowne, who died in 1774, at the age of 90. He made the grasshopper on the vane of Faneuil Hall, in compliment to Faneuil, who had a grasshopper on the vane of his summer- house on the summit of Pemberton Hill, in the rear of his man- sion. They were destroyed in 1835, when the hill was levelled.
Just where the older portion of the cemetery adjoins the newer is the Greenwood tomb, in which lies the body of the Rev. Francis W. P. Greenwood, D. D., who occupied the pulpit of King's Chapel in the early part of the present century.
On a stone bearing the name of Mrs. Ammey Hunt. who died in 1769, at the age of 40, is the following stanza:
A sister of Sarah Lucas lyeth here, Whom I did love most dear ; And now her soul hath took its flight, And bid her spightful foes good night.
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
A stone that has withstood the assaults of wind and weather much more successfully than the imprint of British bullets, bears this inscription ;
Here lies buried in A stone grave 10 feet deep CAPT DANIEL MALCOM MERCHT Who departed this life October 23d 1769 Aged 44 years. A true Son of Liberty a Friend to the Public An Enemy to Oppression and One of the foremost in opposing the Revenue Acts on America.
In February, 1768, Captain Malcom had a schooner arrive in the harbor, and as the story is told, he was determined that the cargo, consisting of wines, should escape the unpopular duties. Consequently, the vessel was detained about five miles from the town, among the islands in the harbor, and the wine, of which there were sixty casks, was brought up under cover
A of the night, guarded by a party of men armed with clubs. meeting of merchants and traders was then held, at which the Captain presided, and it was determined by them not to import any commodities, except what was required by the fisheries, for eighteen months. This incensed the officers and menials of the government very much; but it was persisted in, and hence the remarkable inscription which was placed a little over a year afterward upon the large memorial stone erected over his grave. It particularly attracted the attention of the British soldiery, and the marks of their bullets are very perceptible on its face.
On the brow of the Hill on the Snowhill Street side is the Josiah Snelling tomb, in which was buried, in December, 1848, the remains of William J. Snelling, author of "Tales of the North-West," "Truth: A Gift for Scribblers," and other works. He was an editor of the Galaxy, with the late Joseph T. Buckingham. At the time of his death he was editor of the Boston Herald.
The stone marking the tomb of Rev. Andrew Eliot, D. D., bears his name, his age, 60 years, and the date of his death, September 13, 1778, on one side, and a beautiful coat of arms on the other, which does not belong to the family; and the next prominent object is a large tomb once used for the reception of the bodies of infants.
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
The Dupee monument is the finest in the enclosure. The inscriptions are as follows :
GOD IS LOVE.
Ephesians 1, 9. 1 John iv. 8.
1 Cor. xv. 49. Matthew v. 9.
Erected by ISAAC DUPEE, Grandson to G. Aged LXXV. August 31st, 1846.
My name from the palms of his hands Eternity will not erase;
Impressed on his heart, it remains In marks of indelible grace. Yes, I to the end shall endure, As sure as the earnest is given,
More happy, but not more secure, The glorified spirits in heaven.
Near the Dupee monument is the Thomas Goodwill tomb. Mr. Goodwill, at one time, owned the land now known as the Charter Street Cemetery. Thomas and Rebecca Goodwill pre- sented to their granddaughter, Mrs. Lydia Holmes, wife of John Bishop of Medford, a silver tankard, manufactured by the father of Paul Revere, inscribed Sept. 7, 1747. It is now in the posses- sion of one of their descendants, Mrs. Eliza B. Emery, of Newton.
Near the south-west corner of the burying ground is a slab upon which is the following inscription :
In memory of CAPT ROBERT NEWMAN, who died March 23d 1806, Æt 51.
Though Neptune's waves and Boreas' blasts Have tossed me to and fro, Now well escaped from all their rage, I'm anchored here below. Safely I'll ride in triumph here, With many of our fleet, Till signals call to weigh again, Our Admiral Christ to meet. O may all those I've left behind Be washed in Jesus' blood, And when they leave this world of sin Be ever with their Lord.
Nearly opposite, on the Snowhill Street side, is the Peter Thomas tomb. It contains the remains of him who hung the
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
lights in the steeple of the North Church, on the night of the ever to be remembered 18th of April, 1775. Paul Revere, for whom the signal was set, does not lie within these grounds, but the remains of Mrs. Mary Baker, a sister, are here interred.
Near the Snowhill Street path is a slab bearing these words :
In memory of BETSY wife of David Darling, died March 23d, 1809, A. 43.
She was the mother of 17 children, and around her lies 12 of them, and two were lost at sea. BROTHER SEXTONS, Please leave a clear birth for me near by this stone.
Mr. Darling, at the time when this stone was erected, was grave-digger in this ground. He was also sexton of the North Church and lived on Salem Street. He died in September, 1820, and no attention was paid to his request, as he was buried in a tomb in this ground at some distance from his wife and family, and no one erected a monument to his memory.
The following pathetic lines are appended to an inscription on a stone near the Charter Street gate, which tells the passer- by that Hannah Langford died November 19th, 1796, aged 15 years and 6 months :
Nor youth nor innocence could save Hannah from the insatiable Grave, But cease our tears no longer weep The little Maid doth only sleep, Anou she'll wake and rise again And in her Saviour's arms remain.
On the Hull Street path is a tombstone
Sacred to the Memory of MR. JACOB HAWKINS, Who professed faith in Jesus Christ about 14 Years and about 1 year a Preacher of the Gospel. He was one of a sound Judg- ment meek & happy Spirit. He ended his days in peace July 10th 1797 aged 31 years.
Jesse Lee, who preached his first sermon in this city on Boston Common, and gathered the first Methodist Society in Boston, built a place of worship on Hanover Avenue, and was buried on Copp's Hill, in the Pitman tomb.
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
Burials have ceased, but interments in vaults are of frequent occurrence -from fifteen to twenty each year. The interior of these places of sepulture are by no means cheerful, but they are not nearly so repulsive as might be expected. Raised as they are above the surrounding territory, they are as dry as the cellar of a well-drained house. A body deposited in one of them soon loses all offensive odor, and, until the inevitable crumbling of the coffin occurs, there is nothing to offend either sight or smell.
The dates of five tombstones were altered, about seventy years ago, by the late George Darracott, at that time quite young, so as to make 1690 read 1620, and 1695 read 1625 - the altered figure in each case being a 9 changed to a 2. Similar acts of vandalism were performed in other burying grounds in Boston and vicinity. The tombstones removed from where paths were made, were placed in other parts of the ground near by, - thus utterly failing to accomplish their true end. Before this great wrong was perpetrated, petty deeds of the same character were frequent. Stones were taken away to be used in the con- struction of chimneys, to build drains, to cover the openings of tombs, and to place in the bottoms of vaults for coffins to rest upon; a great many stones, however, have been recovered and placed in the ground among their fellows. But the work of des- ecration has been extended to the tombs, several of which have at some time been controlled by enterprising undertakers, who have removed the remains once deposited to await a resurrection of a totally different character, and used the space thus obtained for the prosecution of a traffic, that of letting out temporary burial space which, at one time, was far more lucrative than it is now. Among those thus rifled is that of the Hutchinson family, situated near the south-east corner of the cemetery. A square slab of sandstone covers its entrance, and upon it is still to be seen the beautiful coat of arms with which the members of this high-bred race emblazoned their belongings. But the name of Hutchinson has been cut out and that of Thomas Lewis put in its place, so that to the casual observer, or one who knows nothing of Heraldry, this memorial conveys an idea which is entirely false. In the vault beneath this tablet once rested all that was mortal of Thomas Hutchinson, father of the Governor, and of Elisha Hutchinson, grandfather of His Excellency, the latter having fallen in an attack made by the Indians at Quaboag in Brook- field, - descendants of the famous Ann Hutchinson and her hus- band, Governor William. Now no one can tell where these
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Old Copp's Hill and Burial Ground.
sacred relics are, as they were removed long ago. To Thomas Hutchinson the North End is indebted for its first school-house ; he first proposed it at Town Meeting, and paid for it out of his own funds. How grateful we have been for his generosity is shown from the fact, that the house now erected on the same lot is called the Eliot School-house, in honor of a former pastor of the New Nortlı Church.
Another vault, that has been misused in the same manner, bears a coat of arms that is remarkably well carved, and beneath this is an inscription apparently as legible as when it came freslı from the chisel. This memorial stone, like nine-tenths of all the others, is of slate, and, like them, it shows but little of the wear of the elements or of the lapse of time. It stands a short dis- tance from the main entrance toward the west, and is about three feet by two in size, with a thickness of less than two inches. Its armorial bearings are a coat of chain-mail, upon which is a breastplate, surmounted by a helmet with its visor down. Upon the top of this is a swan crowned, having a chain around its neck and thence over its back. Ornamental scrolls surround this de- vice, and on either side are clusters of domestic fruits, including apples, pears, peaclies, corn, wheat, grapes, plums and cherries, all of which are recognized at a glance. Within a space of less than two square feet is the following inscription:
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