The Old Burying Ground

In this peaceful plot of ground, under the boughs of ancient live oak trees, weathered tombstones chronicle the heritage of Eastern North Carolina. As you walk the sandy paths of one of the state's oldest cemeteries, you can almost feel the history each grave has to tell. As early as the eighteenth century, coastal residents were laid to their final rest, many facing east - "to be facing the sun when they arose on judgment morn."

The oldest legible date on a grave marker is 1756; however, many of the grave sites are much older. Many earlier graves are simply covered with cypress slabs, shells, or brick. The cemetery was deeded to the town of Beaufort in 1731.

The headquarters of the historical association has a pamphlet which will guide you to several of the unique graves and give a short history of each. Among them are Otway Burns, the famous privateer who died on Portsmouth Island and was brought to this site by boat. His tomb is covered with a gun taken from his ship, the Snap Dragon.

The story of a little girl buried in a rum keg will pique your interest, as will others - history lessons waiting to be learned. The Old Burying Ground has dozens of graves with interesting stories. One grave, according to legend, contains an English sailor who was buried upright so that he could eternally salute his king. Another grave marker bears this inscription:

The form that fills this silent grave,
once tossed on ocean's rolling wave,
but in a port securely fast
he's dropped his anchor here at last.

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