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Pierce tomb
An event this past week at the Old Burying Ground on Greenleaf Street in Newburyport, Massachusetts, sounded more like a tale from a nineteenth-century horror story than a current headline.
The night before last I heard the news that a tomb had been broken into at the Old Burying Ground in Newburyport. I sat there in absolute horror, recalling that the brother of my 3rd great grandmother had a tomb in that very cemetery dating from the nineteenth- century. This very tomb is supposed to be the last resting place of my ancestor Col. Joseph Huse (1738-1811). That next morning, after calls to the Newburyport Public works Department, Newburyport Daily News office, and the Newburyport Police Department I was set at ease. The tomb was not the one owned by my relatives. Then my natural genealogical curiosity took over. Both sources told me no one was certain who was buried in the tomb. The name chiseled above the door of the granite and marble tomb says simply “PIERCE 1863”. My first instinct was to turn to the published records of Newburyport cemeteries. This reference provided no additional information on who was interred in the tomb. However, I did note that two eighteenth-century gravestones for the wife and daughter of a Capt. Nicholas Pierce (c. 1761-1812) were buried in the same general area.
From what I have learned, based on a coffin plate found inside the tomb, William Balch Pierce (b. 1829) is likely to have been buried there. [The date of death stated for this person is listed as Balch William Pierce in the Newburyport vital records where it shows he died in Hoboken, NJ. and was transported to Newburyport for burial - added by Paul M. Noyes]. William Balch Pierce was a grandson of the Capt. Nicholas Pierce mentioned above. It is very likely that this tomb contains William’s remains, and those of his parents Jacob Willard Pierce (1788-1846) and Dolly Katherine (Picket) Pierce (1791-1861). And it is also likely that this may be the last resting place for William’s uncle, bank note engraver Nicholas Pierce Jr. (1786-1862) and his wife Rebecca (Davenport) Pierce (1786-1863).
The following is purely a theory as to who is buried in the “Pierce 1863” tomb…
A tomb was purchased by the children of brothers Jacob Willard Pierce and Nicholas Pierce Jr. This tomb was situated at the grave lot where Jacob W. Pierce had been
buried in 1846 (after dying from consumption); his wife Katherine in 1861; his brother Nicholas Pierce in 1862; and lastly Rebecca in 1863. The tomb was constructed in 1863 by children of Jacob and or Nicholas [no cemetery records for lot purchases apparently survive]. This explains the date of “1863” carved above the tomb. The earlier burials were disinterred and placed in the tomb. One source says there are six caskets in the tomb; another says four. No doubt the remains of Capt. Nicholas Pierce’s first wife and child from the eighteenth century were to fragile to rebury, so that is why they remain outside the tomb. It is even possible that the sea captain and merchant Capt. Nicholas Pierce and his second wife were buried in this tomb. Generally gravestones are removed and placed in the tomb. If the tomb contains old gravestones or other coffin plates, this could be a further clue to it’s occupants.
I have not outlined the unpleasant events surrounding the tomb desecration; you can easily find the details by searching the internet using “Google” News if you care. However, I must pose yet another questions about the recent news coverage. At least two printed accounts claim that the tomb was the grave of a Civil War soldier. Since there is no confirmed listing of those buried in the tomb, how did this story arise? The Newburyport Police department they stated they informed the press it was a “Civil War -era” tomb since it was constructed in 1863. However this statement has been repeated in print to say a “Civil War Soldier” was the body disturbed, obviously an innocent mistake. Also, I’m curious about the source of the statement that about everbody in the tomb had died of tuberculosis. And I’ve seen it further stated that tuberculosis is the reason they were all buried in this tomb. First off, I have never heard that above-ground tombs would be used instead of interment in the ground for tuberculosis (aka consumption or phthisis). Secondly, how do we know they all died from consumption when we don’t even know all the names and dates of the tomb’s occupants? Being a curious genealogist and historian I just would like to confirm the primary source on both of these statements.
Since this event I have compiled a concise listing of all the descendants of Capt. Nicholas Pierce which I will submit for an article somewhere in the future. If you are descended from this family, or have any additional information on this tomb, please contact me. I will also be happy to provide the names and numbers of the contacts I have for the city of Newburyport who are actively investigating the tomb desecration case.
Just a final note for you to ponder…
In a thousand years when archaeologists start disinterring the burial remains from the twenty-first century I would find it fitting to leave them the following epitaph (compliments of Shakespeare) on my own tomb:
Good friend, for Jesus’ sake forbear
To dig the dust enclosèd here.
Blessed be the man that spares these stones,
And cursed be he that moves my bones.
I understand the city of Newburyport will soon return the remains to the tomb, then permanently wall it up. At that point, regardless of the identity of the mortal remains inside the tomb marked “Pierce 1863” I do hope they will all finally Rest in peace.
Genealogically yours,
David Allen Lambert
http://ancestoryarchives.blogspot.com/2013/07/tomb-desecration-in-newburyport.html
Status: Located
Old Hill Burying Ground, Newburyport, Essex, Massachusetts, USA
1791 - 1861 (~ 70 years)