King’s Chapel & King’s Chapel Burying Ground

Located on Tremont Street, King’s Chapel and King’s Chapel Burying Ground are two of the oldest sites you’ll see on the Freedom Trail. But did you know that they are not actually affiliated with each other? Read on to learn more!

History

The burying ground was established by the Puritan settlers of Boston in 1630, and was the first proper burial space here. It was the only burial ground in Boston for almost 30 years and was called the Burying Ground. When the Copps’ Hill Burying Ground opened in 1659, it was then referred to as the Old Burying Ground.

By 1686, there were enough people in the colony following the Anglican faith that Royal Governor Edmund Andros seized a portion of the Old Burying Ground to build a proper house of worship for them. The bodies buried in the land where the new chapel was were re-buried elsewhere. The chapel would be the first sanctioned non-Puritan church in the colony.

The first King’s Chapel building was made of wood and opened in 1688. The current structure, made of stone, was completed in 1754. The building includes a crypt, which in the 1750s was the preferred burial method of devout Anglicans. Tombs in the crypt were purchased by the wealthy, white members of the congregation and remained privately owned by their families for generations.

Crypts fell out of fashion due to increasing concerns for public health in the 19th century, and the crypt at King’s Chapel closed in the 1850s. In the 1890s, the tombs were permanently sealed. The crypt at King’s Chapel is one of the oldest such burial places remaining in the United States.

Meanwhile, the Old Burying Ground was renamed the King’s Chapel Burying Ground in the 1750s. It remained under the control of local government as a public cemetery. It was an active burial location until the early decades of the 19th century, when large garden-style cemeteries like Mount Auburn in Cambridge became more popular.

The locations of the earliest burials at King’s Chapel Burying Ground remain unknown. This is due both to the fragility of the stones and the periodical rearranging of the markers. The oldest gravestone still visible today belongs to William Paddy, who died in 1658. His headstone was found buried in the street next to the Old State House in 1830, and was then relocated back to the burying ground.

King’s Chapel Burying Ground is one of sixteen cemeteries overseen by the City of Boston as part of the Historic Burying Grounds Initiative. It is open to visitors seven days a week from 9 am-4 pm.

King’s Chapel is an active independent Christian unitarian congregation affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association. The chapel and crypt are open for visits and tours at varying days and times. Further information is available on their website, opens a new window.

Notable Burials

King's Chapel Burying Ground

John Winthrop (1588-1649) - First Puritan Governor of Massachusetts.
John Cotton (1585-1652) - Powerful religious leader; maternal grandfather of Cotton Mather
Mary Chilton (1607-1679) - Mayflower passenger, supposedly the first woman to step ashore at Plymouth.
William Dawes (1745-1799) - Rode with Paul Revere on famous midnight ride.
- Dawes may have been removed from the burying ground and re-buried at Forest Hills Cemetery.

King's Chapel Crypt

William Shirley (1694-1771) - Governor of Massachusetts from 1741-1749.
Dr. Thomas Bulfinch II (1728-1802) - Prominent local physician; father of architect Charles Bulfinch
Joseph Barrell (1739-1804) - Local merchant, member of the Sons of Liberty
Chevalier de Saint-Sauveur (c. 1750-1778) - French naval officer, traveled to Boston as a part of a fleet sent from France to aid in the war effort. He was killed while trying to stop an anti-Catholic riot and interred in the Stranger's Tomb, which was used for people who died in Boston who had no one to pay for their burial. A memorial to him was dedicated outside the chapel in 1917.

Learn More

King's Chapel Burying Ground

City of Boston Cemeteries - King's Chapel Burying Ground
King's Chapel
- Walking Tour - King's Chapel Burying Ground
- Burying Ground
Books at the BPL
Images from the BPL's collection on Digital Commonwealth

King's Chapel

King's Chapel
Books at the BPL
Images from the BPL's collection on Digital Commonwealth

Upcoming Event

Want to learn how to locate your ancestors in one of Boston’s historic cemeteries? Then join us online on December 17 at 6 pm for Genealogy: Finding Your Ancestors in Boston's Historic Cemeteries. Learn more and register here.