Harmony Grove Cemetery

Harmony Grove Cemetery is a nonprofit cemetery and crematory in Salem, founded in 1840 as part of the 19th-century rural cemetery movement and maintained in perpetuity. Nearly 57 acres of winding paths, historic monuments and more than 1,000 trees create a park-like landscape that visitors can walk and explore. It is the final resting place of more than 20,000 people, from civic leaders and artists to businesspeople and leather workers.

Colonel Francis F. Peabody proposed the cemetery in 1837 as Salem’s burial grounds grew crowded, inspired by Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge. Alexander Wadsworth, who also worked on Mount Auburn, laid out the grounds around rocky cliffs, wooded knolls and shaded groves that locals had called Harmony Grove since 1824. Highlights include a 40-foot rock outcrop with hillside mausoleums, terraced family plots and quiet wooded valleys.

What to Know

• The Grove Street entrance frames a view of the Blake Memorial Chapel through wrought-iron gates.
• A Gothic Revival caretaker’s house from 1839 and an 1892 barn survive on the grounds.
• Soldiers’ Lot, established in 1863, honors Salem residents who died in the Civil War.
• Visitors are asked to review the cemetery’s guidelines and respect families visiting loved ones.