Point of Graves Burial Ground (3611072580)

Point of Graves Burial Ground is a small historic cemetery in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, dating to the 17th century. It was the final resting place for many of Portsmouth's prominent residents including the Wentworth family, the Vaughan family, the Rogers, and the Lears. It is the oldest known surviving

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

in Portsmouth, and one of the oldest in the state. It has about 125 gravestones. Previously neglected, it is now well maintained by the Mayor's Committee and the city. The cemetery plot was on a point of land that directly overlooked the

Piscataqua River The Piscataqua River (Abenaki: ''Pskehtekwis'') is a tidal river forming the boundary of the U.S. states of New Hampshire and Maine from its origin at the confluence of the Salmon Falls River and Cochecho River. The drainage basin of the river ...

in earlier times.

History

Captain John Pickering II agreed to let the town have half an acre "upon the neck of land on which he liveth, where the people have been wont to be buried, which land shall be impropriated forever unto the use of a burying place." The earliest legible gravestone is dated 1682. There are ghost stories related about the cemetery. Putative

haunting The list of reportedly haunted locations throughout the world, that are locations said to be haunted by ghosts or other supernatural beings, including demons. Reports of haunted locations are part of ghostlore, which is a form of folklore. Ar ...

s are part of tourist appeal. It is believed that the area was used as a cemetery prior to its formal dedication. However, because Pickering retained use of the site for cattle grazing, many earlier stones were destroyed or damaged. The cemetery has many fine examples of

gravestone A headstone, tombstone, or gravestone is a stele or marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. It is traditional for burials in the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim religions, among others. In most cases, it has the deceased's name, da ...

carvings by talented and noted

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

carvers. Because of its extended use, there are many examples illustrating the fashionable evolution of headstone symbolism,

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...

ography,

imagery Imagery is visual symbolism, or figurative language that evokes a mental image or other kinds of sense impressions, especially in a literary work, but also in other activities such as psychotherapy. Forms There are five major types of sensory im ...

and

monumental inscription {, align=right , 250px, The inscription, carved in stone, on the monument of Sir John Young and Dame Joane, erected in 1606 in Bristol.html"_;"title="Bristol_Cathedral,_Bristol">Bristol_Cathedral,_Bristol,_England._Sir_John_entertained_Elizabeth ...

. Elizabeth Elatson (d. 1704–05), a

house fire A structure fire is a fire involving the structural components of various types of residential, commercial or industrial buildings, such as barn fires. Residential buildings range from single-family detached homes and townhouses to apartmen ...

victim, is buried there. The report in ''

The Boston News-Letter ''The Boston News-Letter'', first published on April 24, 1704, is regarded as the first continuously published newspaper in the colony of Massachusetts. It was heavily subsidized by the British government, with a limited circulation. All copies ...

'' was the first published account of a house fire in America. It is one of six cemeteries owned and maintained by the

City of Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dense ...

, which is working under a comprehensive maintenance and restoration program. It is supported via the Historic Cemeteries Trust Fund.

Location

It is located on the south side of Mechanic Street opposite Prescott Park, between Marcy Street and the Peirce Island Bridge. The area around it was once a center of coastal trade and warehouses. Tours of the graveyard are offered by local author Roxie Zwicker. ''

Yankee Magazine ''Yankee'' is a bimonthly (once every two months) magazine about lifestyle, travel and culture in the New England region of the United States, based in Dublin, New Hampshire. The first issue appeared in September 1935. It has a paid circulation ...

'' named it to the top five "best cemetery tours in New England" in 2017. That evaluation seems to depend both on the cemetery, and the identity of the knowledgeable and amusing

docent The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de con ...

, who opines that "cemeteries are art museums," is paired with a claimed spectral sidekick, and has visited over 400 New England burial grounds.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

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External links

A Very Grave Matter
online tomb-by-tomb information
Point of Graves Burial Ground
at Find a Grave * {{Coord, 43.0754, N, 70.7509, W, type:landmark, display=title Cemeteries in New Hampshire Buildings and structures in Portsmouth, New Hampshire Cemeteries established in the 17th century 17th-century establishments in the Thirteen Colonies