Copp’s Hill Burying Ground recognized with 2025 Preservation Achievement Award

The Boston Parks and Recreation Department is proud to announce that Copp’s Hill Burying Ground was recently recognized by the Boston Preservation Alliance as a 2025 Preservation Achievement Award recipient. The award recognizes the City’s extensive efforts to conserve and restore headstones at one of Boston’s oldest and most historically significant burying grounds.

Originally called North Burying Ground, Copp's Hill was laid out in 1659 as Boston’s second burying ground and is the final resting place of over 10,000 Bostonians, including prominent historical figures as well as thousands of free and enslaved Black residents, artisans, tradespeople, and craftspeople who helped shape the City’s early identity. The burying ground's harbor-facing location gave it strategic importance during the early American Revolution, when British forces used the vantage point to train their cannons toward Charlestown. 

This multi-year restoration project, led by the Historic Burying Grounds Initiative and supported with funding from the Community Preservation Act, was completed in two phases from 2018 to 2024. The work included the conservation of approximately 300 gravestones and the cleaning and re-setting of more than 1,000 additional markers. Many of the stones, some dating back to the 1600s, required specialized treatment due to their fragile condition and significant weight.

The project was completed in partnership with Daedalus, Inc. as general contractor and Building and Monument Conservation as a key member of the project team. 

Today, Copp’s Hill remains one of the most visited historic sites on Boston’s Freedom Trail and is a vital link in the city’s legacy of public space, memory, and civic identity. As Boston marks 250 years of revolution, the preservation of Copp’s Hill Burying Ground ensures that this important Revolutionary-era site is ready to welcome visitors and serve as an educational resource for years to come. 

For more information about Copp’s Hill Burying Ground and other historic sites maintained by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, visit boston.gov/parks. To learn more about the City’s plans for the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, visit boston250.org. To stay up to date with news, events, and improvements in Boston parks visit boston.gov/parks, call (617) 635-4505, join our email list, and follow our social channels @bostonparksdept on X, Facebook, Instagram, and @parks.boston.gov on Bluesky.

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