Salem in Essex County, Massachusetts — The American Northeast (New England)

Friends Cemetery

Established 1718

Photographed By Joe Cherry, February 21, 2022

1. Friends Cemetery Marker

Inscription. The Friends Burying Ground is Salem's third oldest and smallest cemetery. Its earliest existing gravestone is dated 1702 for Cestofor Foster. Members of the locally well-known Southwick family are also buried here. On this site in 1718 the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) constructed their second meeting house here to replace an earlier meeting house constructed further east on Essex Street. The second meeting house was removed about 1832. During the 17th & 18th centuries, Salem was a center of New England Quakerism. The earliest Quakers arrived in Salem in the 1650s, suffered persecution and were exiled under the laws of the Massachusetts Bay Colony's general court. The simple headstones and peaceful landscape of the cemetery reflects its Quaker heritage.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Churches & Religion • Colonial Era • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the Quakerism series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1702.

Location. 42° 31.12′ N, 70° 54.279′ W. Marker is in Salem, Massachusetts, in Essex County. Marker is on Essex Street just east of North Pine Street, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 396 Essex St, Salem MA 01970, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers

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are within walking distance of this marker. Where's Poseidon? (about 800 feet away, measured in a direct line); Joseph Neal House (approx. 0.2 miles away); Arthur S. Rogers - Benjamin W. Russell House (approx. 0.2 miles away); John Pickering II House (approx. ¼ mile away); The Pickering House (approx. ¼ mile away); Burial Ground (approx. ¼ mile away); Great Salem Fire Alarm (approx. ¼ mile away); Arthur Forrester Devereux (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Salem.

Photographed By Jocelyne Durrenberger

2. Friends Cemetery Marker

Gates locked, easy to see the cemetery through the gates

Credits. This page was last revised on June 19, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 4, 2022, by Joe Cherry of Salem, Massachusetts. This page has been viewed 495 times since then and 78 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on May 4, 2022, by Joe Cherry of Salem, Massachusetts. 2. submitted on June 19, 2023, by Jocelyne Durrenberger of Salem, Massachusetts. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.