Restoration

Old Burying Ground Iron FenceThe Old Burying Ground, like so many New England cemeteries, is filled with the history that defines and shapes our community. Many of the first families of Littleton are buried in the Old Burying Ground and their descendants continue to reside here. During the 1990s, maintaining the historic nature of the cemetery became a priority for the Cemetery Commission. After being awarded a $75,000 Historic Landscape Preservation matching grant from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection in December 1999, the cemetery department hired professionals and skilled craftsmen to assist with the much-needed cemetery renovations.

A historian conducted research and assisted in the application process to register the cemetery on the state and national register of historic cemeteries. An arborist investigated the status and health of the trees growing within the Old Burying Ground while a landscape architect and an archeologist collaborated on the appropriate locations for new trees and shrubs.

Old Burying Ground Pinecone DecorationThe iron gates and posts were repaired by an ironworker and several granite corner posts and berms were repaired and restored to their original locations by a stoneworker. The passageway through the front stone wall was widened allowing for handicapped access and the side stonewall was restored. Finally, the cemetery was surveyed, inventoried, and new maps were drawn with accurate locations of all stone monuments. The inventory of those interred in the Old Burying Ground was entered into the database of the cemetery's computer mapping program.