You're Standing on a Burial Ground

Quaker burial records for this land survive from as early as 1687, and in 1701 William Penn formally deeded it to the Quakers for a burying place, making it Pennsylvania's first official burial ground. Arch Street's burial grounds were first organized by family and community, but as they grew fuller the Quakers began burying the deceased in chronological rows. The final recorded burial took place in 1872, and although the exact number buried on the property cannot be determined, conservative estimates range from 13,000 to 20,000.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · United States