Hartford’s 2nd Colonial Burying Ground is having a Cemetery Clean Up Day
July 17th – 11am – 3pm
Center Cemetery
944 Main St., East Hartford

Purchased back in 1709 by the same committee that was responsible for what is now the Ancient Burying Ground in downtown Hartford. By the 1700’s almost 2/3’s of Hartford’s population was living east of the Great River and therefore, required their own burying place. Over time the Goodwin family who owned the surrounding land, donated or sold off parcels that continued to enlarge the cemetery into the 20th century.

Looking for burials of early and colonial settlers of Hartford, you need to come to East Hartford. Many forget that Hartford prior to the 1780’s encompassed the surrounding towns that later separated from the parent township. The original boundaries went West to Farmington, North to Simsbury, East to Bolton and southerly to Wethersfield and Glastonbury.

Although the Friends of Center Cemetery organization has disbanded some of us are still around that wish to over see the care for this precious and fast fading history.

Ruth Brown of Connecticut Gravestone Network and friends from Rediscovering History will be sponsoring a workshop that will make a difference and help those interested learn how to care for what we call our “outdoor museums, where you can reach out and touch history.

So come and join us, you might want to bring a bucket, gloves and prepare to get dirty.
We need help trimming bushes, cleaning stones and plan on resetting a few badly leaning stones.

It’s also a good time for descendants to come and visit, ask questions and find out how to care for your own older family memorials.

For inquiries call Ruthie Brown 860-643-5652 or email shapbrown@cox.net

Parking is available next door behind the Key Food Store..

For more info on the cemetery please go to the new cemetery link on the library website:
https://www.easthartfordct.gov/east-hartford-public-library/pages/center-cemetery
Presently the Pod Cast QR codes are not working – but voice recordings are now with the library.
Go directly https://archive.org/details/center-cemetery-east-hartford-ct. for audio recordings.