old burial hill

If you were to go look at old burial stones, this would be the place to do it. It sits on top a hill with breathtaking views and then allows you to meander towards Redds Pond. One of the splendid stops in Marblehead to take a brief history tour

Even if you are not a fan of visiting cemeteries (unlike me), you should make time to visit Old Burial Hill in Marblehead, as the views from the top of the hill are breathtaking. There was not a single visitor the day I was there, and I thoroughly enjoyed the peace and quiet, as well as the natural beauty.The cemetery is quite a bit larger than most I visited in the Cape Ann area, and was by far the most well maintained. Make time for this beautiful, serene place.

We would never consider going to a cemetery, but reviews indicated this was worth visiting. This small cemetery held many Revolutionary War heroes and contained tombstones from the 1700s. Very interesting place to visit. Also, a very good view looking down into Marblehead.

Interesting old cemetery with pretty views of the water.... Check it out if you like old cemeteries and a little history.... Definitely one the older cemeteries I've visited... Nice spot for photos but you must visit the office for a permit if you want to do stone rubbings... So said the sign....

This is a place of respect. It would have been nice if more people treated it that way. Many of the graves are from the 1700's. You can still read many of the headstones.

Google General John Glover and you will find out that we never would have won the War without him. It is amazing what he did.

Located a little bit out of town, but easy walk. Oldest cemetery in New England.....amazing to see the old tombstones! Nice bench to sit and reflect!

I took a walk through the Burial grounds . It is beautifully maintained. I love history and reading the headstones was so interesting. This spot like many others in Marblehead have beautiful views of the harbor. Walk across the street to Fountian park on the hill.

Lovely and interesting headstones and a beautiful view of the harbor from the gazebo. If you combine this with a walk across Orne St. to Fountain Park and then onto Ft Sewall, you'll really get a sense of the history in what was once a small fishing village.I live in Marblehead and get to walk this all of the time ; ) I also take any out of town visitors to this spot.

Not only does Old Burial Hill have some really interesting headstones and grave markers to look at, but the view of Marblehead from up there is wonderful. Can be a bit tricky to navigate at night as there is no artificial lighting, just moon- and starlight.

Beaufifully maintained cemetary dating back to the 1600's. Definately worth strolling through and remembering those that have passed before us.

When I was in Marblehead with my kids when they were young, I'd always take them on an after-dinner walk into the Old Town, ending at the Old Burial Hill at dusk. Not far from the place where the town was first settled in 1629, it's the best place to soak up the history and atmosphere of this very special place. Next to it is Redd's Pond, named for Mammy Redd, the first "witch" sentenced to death in the notorious Salem Witch Trials. A significant tomb is that of John Glover whose Marblehead fishermen's regiment saved George Washington's army after it's disastrous defeat on Long Island and later ferried it across the Delaware to victory. Nearby is the "Old Brig", home the famous "Wizard", John Dimond and his equally famous fortune-telling daughter, Moll Pitcher. Down below on the water is "Screeching Woman" Cove, named after the unfortunate woman murdered there by pirates in the 1600s and whose shrieks people still claim to hear on dark summer nights. This is not the canned, commercial spookiness of Salem. Among the early colonial slate and marble headstones with death-head motifs and ancient script, it's impossible not to sense the ghosts of a fascinating past around you..

Grave headstones go way back in time with famous names. Worth a stroll and see old headstones.There is parking down the hill.

One of the highlights of visiting an historic village in New England like Marblehead, is strolling through the local graveyard to acknowledge the ancestors who first tread upon the very same hallowed ground. Old Burial Hill is not only one of the oldest, historic resting places in New England, with Mary Lattimer's stone dating to 1681; but also, it is a remarkable landscape and prospect, with amazing views of the town's local rooftops, the bucolic Redd's Pond and the not-so-distant Atlantic Ocean. Although rubbings of the old head or footstones is discouraged, if you are seeking a baby name, it can be interesting to take account of common names, both family and first, found here. Familar names, such as Mary, Hannah, Elizabeth, Sarah and Anne; or John, Samuel, Daniel, William and James; or even more extraordinary monikers, like Deliverance, Rebekah, Elias, Thaddeus and Hezikiah, of the long-gone souls are carefully inscribed in stone. Ponder Julian versus Gregorian dates of death, or check out the artful decorative elements and simple symbolism, carved on the marble and slate, including icons such as winged death's heads, hourglasses and scythes, or willows and urns -- all are equally worthy past times. Here, you may pay homage to lost fishermen, first ministers, or sea captains, like Captn James Mugford and his crew of the Franklin, who captured a British munitions ship; or Revolutionary War Hero General John Glover; or Marblehead resident, Wilmot "Mammy" Redd, who was hanged as a witch in Salem. Or, just sit and contemplate your own mortality for a while, sheltered in the picturesque hilltop gazebo:"Behold & see, as you pass by,As you are now, so once was I;As I am now, so you must by,Prepare for Death, and follow me."[from tombstone of William Seal, 1797.]

All that I can really say is that this site is the most beautiful, breathtaking, magical sites that I have ever been to in my life. We went on a gray and windy November morning. There were leaves fluttering about the beautiful historic tombstones, and the view of the harbor, sea, and rooftops is beyond description. What a profoundly wonderful piece of history.