Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery in Dunstable, MA ~ Beauty in Grief
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There is a cemetery, rather small as cemeteries can go, on tbe north side of MA-113 in Dunstable, Massachusettes. If you are a taphophile (a lover of cemeteries), it's worthy of the time it would take to go out of your way to find it. It's in a bend in the road up in the woods and even I always almost miss it. It sneaks up on you. You have to drive down off the road onto a tiny dirt parking area. Surrounded by a stone wall and a wrought iron arch gateway, Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery was established in 1754 and is no longer active. It is very well kept up because it holds the graves of the town's founding fathers.
The beauty of the graves and their survival over these 250 + years is pretty amazing. It is a very quiet place, even when a car drives by. Peaceful. There are no stories of hauntings, no wailing ghosts. But there is a feeling of wishing to speak in quiet tones. No yelling to your partner in this exploration to "come over here! Take a look at this." My husband and I would sometimes split up while exploring cemeteries, but here, we stayed together. I can't tell you why. The artwork of the carvings is primitive yet very heartfelt. The epitaphs are sometimes long winded. It is a beautiful, spiritual place and worth a trip.
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thanks for the lovely comment. i think he is the most handsome man in the world. he didn't like having his picture taken but he got used to it for me. i really, really miss him.
Thank you for this fascinating look at this cemetery. I find it interesting that we used to bury people in the churchyard. Therefore, every Sunday the members would have a little reminder of our end. And so the whole congregation would rise together, across generations, at the Resurrection. Later, we built town cemeteries with nice headstones such as these. Later still, we moved them out of town so we wouldn't have to reminded. Penultimately, we get the flat cemeteries—easier to mow you know—that unless you knew what it was, it might just look like a flat field—especially in winter, covered with snow. Finally comes cremation. But, we burn refuse; we bury treasure.
could you send me the pic of spider in the sun? my email is
chewy0629@yahoo.com something in it caught my eye.
Hello!
I grew up in Dunstable and this is one of my favorite graveyards. I actually named my daughter Rebekah, after that stone you have in the picture. I grew up next door to the central Cemetery, so I have always loved, been fascinated with, and feel comfortable in any cemetery. However, I never knew there was an actual name for it Taphophile, very interesting. I live out of state now, but I was so happy to find your pictures on the web. Thank you for sharing!
you are welcome.
Love this so much! and you introduced me to a new term: taphophile, which I have been my whole life, with others thinking I'm a nutcase for being so. I will never fail to be allured by any cemetery in the world. Thanks for this article
hey i live in Dunstable, i drive this road almost everyday,and just today i decided to finally go in this cemetery with my friend, i read every single gravestone, some have just withered away though. The tree in the first picture is no longer there and neither is the one your husband is standing next to. However, now there is a no trespacing sign, but i obviously don't agree with. We weren't doing anything wrong. I just wanted to see, I think it's awful that you can't go and explore who made your town what it is today.
Sarah, thank you for reading and leaving a comment. i am sorry those trees have been felled. there wasn't a no trespassing sign when we went. i am sorry they wish to keep people out of such a historical place, but maybe it is to try and preserve it as much as possible since it is tucked in an out of the way spot. i hope no one is destroying the gravestones. again, thank you for stopping by.
Teresa McGurk 2 years ago
Nice hub, neat little cemetary. But I couldn't help noticing your husband -- he was very handsome. Thanks for sharing his picture with us.