The Granary Burying Ground

The Granary Burying Ground is a small, tree-shaded historic cemetery in Downtown Boston, set beside Park Street Church along the Freedom Trail. It is the final resting place of an extraordinary number of Revolutionary-era figures, including Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere, James Otis and Robert Treat Paine. Visitors walk its paths to see weathered slate headstones carved with winged skulls and other colonial-era imagery, steps from the busy streets of the modern city.

Established in 1660, the Granary is the third-oldest cemetery in Boston and takes its name from a grain storehouse that once stood nearby. Beyond the famous patriots, it holds victims of the Boston Massacre, including Crispus Attucks, along with the parents of Benjamin Franklin, whose memorial obelisk stands near the center of the grounds. The burying ground is cared for by the City of Boston.

What to Know

• In 2016 the City of Boston won the Massachusetts Historical Commission’s 38th annual preservation award for its work on the cemetery.
• That preservation effort was supported by a grant from the Freedom Trail Foundation’s Preservation Fund.
• The cemetery is open to the public, and there is no admission charge to walk the grounds.