THE ANCIENT BURIAL PLACE OF DEDHAM.

THE EPITAPHS UPON THE TOMB STONES.

COPIED AND ARRANGED FOR THE DEDHAM HISTORICAL SOCIETY,

BY REV. CARLOS SLAFTER, A. M.

In every old Massachusetts town, among the localities of special interest, is the spot where the early inhabitants committed to the earth the bodies of their lamented dead. Consecrated anew year after year by the tears of love and sorrow, it becomes hallowed ground; and as we bend over the low headstone and decipher its quaint inscription, we are reminded of the affection which erected it, and which still commends it to our respect and care. We are told by the humblest stone that a loved one had died, and that loving ones survived who desired to honor, and preserve, the memory of the dead. It is indeed a brief story; but it is a story which we love to read, though its age may be reckoned in centuries. So our old cemetery is a record of human affection well fitted to improve the heart and stir the imagination, It is not necessarily a gloomy spot. It speaks rather of rest and peace after the labors and turmoil of life are ended.

We have endeavored to ascertain how early, and where, the original burial place of Dedham was located. The town records do not answer these questions directly, but they do enable us to form a definite opinion on the subject. Ezechiell Holliman, the original Baptist who baptised Roger Williams, is spoken of in the town records, under date of Dec. 31, 1636, as follows: "And for that Ezechiell Holliman hath felled one great Timber tree for clapboard, without his owne lott, contrary to an order made in that behalfe, therefore, he is fined to pay unto the collector, for the use of the towne, the sum of ten shillings." From this it is evident that Holliman had a lot in his possession as early as 1635. Now, in the grant to him, that lot is described as follows: "Twelve acres more or less as lyeth between the way (now Court street) leading from the Keye to the Pond towards the east and Nicholas Phillips towards the west, and butts upon the said way wynding towards the north, and the way leading to the burying plice towards the south."

From this we see that in 1636 there was a "waye" leading to the burying place. This "waye" probably passed between where now stand the house of Mrs. Benjamin Adams and St. Paul's church, and also passed over the ground recently purchased by the town of Mrs. Adams and added to the cemetery.

Having thus located the road to the "burying place," we find the "burying place" itself by the following description of the lot granted to Nicholas Phillips: "Twelve acres more or less, as it lyeth betweene Ezechiel Holliman towards the east, & Lambert Genere towards the west. And butts upon Charles River towards the north & upon the Swampe & 'burying place towards the South.'" Thus it appears that the primitive "burying place" was south of Nicholas Phillips' lot, and was approached by a road south of Holliman's.

But Holliman's lot embraced the land on which now stand the Orthodox, the Unitarian, and the Episcopal churches; while Phillips' lot is now partly occupied by the county prison. Therefore we conclude that the ground first used for interments was a small, oblong piece, beginning near where the ministers' monument now stands, and extending some distance westerly. Such a lot would be south of the Phillips land, and would be approached by a "waye" south of Holliman's. Why this place was chosen we are not informed, but it is a reasonable supposition that it was open land, perhaps an Indian cornfield, and therefore suitable and convenient for immediate use.

When was the first person buried in this ground? The earliest death mentioned in Dedham records occurred in 1637. But it seems improbable that a burial place should be located before anybody had died. When the first death occurred, then, the question of a place of burial would first present itself, and then the whole body of proprietors in the town would decide upon the appropriate spot. Probably the first year of the settlement, 1635, did not pass before some yielded to the hardships and casualties to which colonists in an unsubdued wilderness are exposed, and were buried in that ground.

It would be reasonable to assume that the death rate, especially among children, was large, on account of a lack of necessary care and comforts. Consequently it was soon apparent that the first little burial lot would be found inadequate to the wants of the town, and, in 1638, Joseph Kingsbury, who had come into possession of the lot of Ezechiell Holliman, and Nicholas Phillips exchanged, for other lands in the town, a portion of their land at the south end of their lots, to enlarge the accommodation for the dead.

After the building of the church, or about 1639, a "bearing waye," one rod wide, was laid out where Bullard street now is, and led directly from the church, and entered the burying ground at its northwest corner. It is probable that the road leading to the south side of the burying ground was then, or soon afterwards, discontinued.

The boundaries of the burial place, thus enlarged, continued the same for about 175 years. They included an area of about one acre. For a period of one hundred years, this was the only place of burial in the town, and it is needless to say that some parts of it were dug over several times to furnish graves for successive generations. Where a stone was not set up, the place of interment was soon forgotten, and so received another occupant. I think we should be surprised to know how many bodies were buried in that

acre of ground. Of course we never can know, but from the nature of things, several thousands have there found their last resting place, and their dust has been commingled more rudely than one would care to know.

Every one must feel that hereafter "The old burying ground" ought to be tenderly cared for, as the final resting place of many noble men and women. One after another, for nearly two hundred years, they were gathered to that little acre of ground, approaching it through that narrow "bearing-way," and, in most cases, conveyed thither by the strong and kindly arms of their neighbors. There let them rest undisturbed, and let not the graves of strangers invade any more the little space which they have so long occupied. It is to be remembered that in every foot of that soil is mingled the dust of those who by their labors changed this town from a savage wilderness to a spot where comfort and refinement rejoice to dwell. As the ashes of thousands are accumulated there, with no monuments to distinguish one from another, it is truly fitting that the most beautiful trees of the forest should weave a canopy over their common resting place, and that the unbroken turf, starred with the daisy and the buttercup, should symbolize their calm and honored repose.

This diagram represents the old Burial Place, and is designed to aid one in finding the stones which bear the Epitaphs. The nineteen spaces represent divisions of the ground, which are called Ranges. The Roman numerals indicate where stones are set along the south side of the Burial Place, to show where the Ranges begin. The number of gravestones, or monuments, in each Range is shown by figures at the right side of the diagram. In the Special Index each name is followed by a Roman numeral and an Arabic number: these refer to its Range and Number in the Record, and also serve to show its approximate position in the Burial Place. The stones in each Range are numbered from south to north in the record; and although there are some irregu larities in their position, it is hoped that a little patience will enable a person to find any one of them.