Claypit Cemetery in Lowell, Massachusetts (See the Changes)

 

Claypit Cemetery

810 Varnum Ave, Lowell, MA 01854

I always knew there was a cemetery in this area, but never saw it until October 4, 2020. The parking lot used to be the land for the outdoor Lowell Drive-In. I went there many years from the '60s to many years later, it was a popular theater and we all knew about the cemetery. It is located on the right side of the cream-colored Marshalls store (below). I went back to the cemetery on December 27, 2023, and what a surprise!

The one above and many below photos were taken on October 4, 2020. As you can see, painting for parking has not been done for the new Market Basket or Marshalls. Market Basket which opened on Friday, October 9, 2020.  Below there are two marked parking spaces for the cemetery.

The last time I saw the cemetery was on October 4, 2020, so I decided to walk around it on December 27, 2023. I was quite surprised to see a fence surrounding it.

I was curious, so I walked to the fence and opened the gate.

The first thing I saw were the holes! But where are the cemetery stones? I saw about 12 orange flag markers. I didn't walk around because of the stability of the ground. I never heard or read anything about this in the news, so clearly this was a surprise.

Taken January 19, 2024

Three websites with information about the cemetery. The first is an article from The Lowell Sun newspaper. The last two are from the Findagrave site which provided information about those buried there.

https://www.lowellsun.com/2019/10/08/the-debate-over-clay-pit-cemetery/

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/2222807/memorial-search?page=1#sr-32949082

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/24824297/amanda-coburn

Copps Hill Burying Ground, Boston, Massachusetts -- 4th Visit and Boy Did I Get Help

These three happy helpful men were on their lunch break and took me over to what I was looking for. This was their 2nd or 3rd year of doing cemetery repair work at this historic cemetery. My previous posts about my search and what I was looking for may be found at the link below.

They brought me to the white stick and explained they moved No. 414 a few inches from No. 413. Previously, they were almost back-to-back against each other.

My Number 414 had a stick in front of it, and the tombstone faced the opposite side. unlike most of the others.

You can only see the writing if the lighting is good.

Thomas Rand son of Robert & Elizabeth Rand, aged 15 weeks, Died on 18 Sep. 1711.

To Copp's Hill Burying Ground / Cemetery, Boston and the 3rd Time is Not a Charm  (There are maps, more photos, and information about this cemetery.)

When I walked along the path to the right, to get to where I thought my stone was, this is what I saw. If I had come before or after lunch, it probably would have been closed because of their job. When I took this photo I was almost on my stomach. It is a very small.

When I left, I took a parting shot of the three men. The photo below was just eight months before.

My September 2022 photo shows how crooked many of the stones were on this path.

A perfect day to check out the broken stones and those that have been repaired.

The cemetery is on the left and the Old North Church is straight ahead.

The Coffin House (1678), Newbury, Massachusetts

 

The Coffin House
14 High St, Newbury, MA 01951

From the HistoricNewEngland.org website, I read, "The Coffin House story follows one of Newbury’s founding families through 1929. See two early back-to-back kitchens where the extended family cooked meals. Coffin House has wallpaper dating to 1815, one of the only surviving butteries in New England, and a fine collection of local furniture and objects. The house is furnished with items passed down in the family, and much of the interior remains unchanged since the nineteenth century." Tristram and JudithCoffin were the first Generation of Coffins. Read the website to learn about the other generations.

The room below has an enormous long table and chest that came with them from England. At the end of this post, we were given an information sheet about the house and the genealogy of the Coffin line for several generations. I don't know if you'll be able to see it clearly because it's quite light. We were told that all the furniture had been donated by various Coffin descendants and in almost every tour there is a person related to this line. I have quite a few Coffin surnames in my line and met a direct line descendant on the tour.

This chest and table apparently came with the earliest Coffins from England.

I enlarged quite a few photos, for a clear picture.

 I did not walk up these stairs to see the bedrooms.

I first saw The Coffin House when it was having a major renovation on June 14, 2023. While I walked around part of the property I had the pleasure of meeting one of the two men who live here. He told me what they knew about the house. I knew I would return in a few months when windows were up, ladders down, and a new roof on.

See below for another HistoricNewEngland house. This property is a short walk away from the Coffin House and is on the same street.

Swett-Ilsley House, Newbury, Essex Co., Massachusetts, posted January 15, 2024.

https://lifefromtheroots.blogspot.com/2023/07/blog-post.html