Copp’s Hill Burying Ground
Listen at the stop, then read the transcript and follow the sources behind the story.
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Transcript
Copp’s Hill looks across toward Charlestown and the ground of the Battle of Bunker Hill. During the fighting in June 1775, British officers used this elevated area to observe the battle and artillery fired from nearby positions.
The burying ground itself contains merchants, artisans and residents of the North End, including Black Bostonians. Among those associated with this cemetery is Prince Hall, a major Black organizer and founder of African American Freemasonry, though the precise location of his grave is uncertain.
This is a good place to widen the revolutionary story. Black New Englanders petitioned for freedom, served in military forces and used revolutionary language to challenge slavery. The new republic’s rhetoric of liberty created opportunities for claims that many white Patriots had not intended to universalize.
Across the river, you can also see how geography shaped military decisions. Charlestown’s hills commanded approaches to Boston. What tourists now cross casually by bridge was a strategic water barrier in 1775.
The Freedom Trail often feels like a route through speeches and buildings. Copp’s Hill returns the story to terrain: elevation, harbor, artillery range and the practical military problem of holding a peninsula.