Tour of Old North Burying Ground (Ipswich)

The Old North Burying Ground on High Street in Ipswich has some of the oldest tombstones in New England, many dating back to the late 17th Century. On this leisurely one-hour walk through the oldest section, we’ll view up to a hundred tombstones carved between 1673 and the late 1700s.

Town historian Gordon Harris shares the stories of the interred, including the town’s earliest and most influential families, many of whose homes are still standing.. Gravestone styles include the death head carvings of William Mumford, the Essex/Merrimac style of John Hartshorne and the Leighton family, and the elaborate gravestones of the Park family. In the fall, the late afternoon sun casts shadows that make the inscriptions easy to read.