Plymouth Burying Ground, established in 1747 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, contains the graves of veterans of the French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War, and the War of 1812. Its gravestones stand in rows running north and south, while the bodies were placed facing east so that on the day of judgment the resurrected dead would arise toward the dawn. The oldest graves, from the mid-1700s and nearest the entrance, bear carved symbols such as winged angels representing the ascension of the soul to heaven, and some carry warnings to the living to maintain a life of virtue. Their inscriptions also reveal the hardships of life, recording losses and tragic deaths. Gravestones from the early 1800s on the lower slope often feature weeping willows symbolizing sorrow, broken trees indicating a life cut short, urns representing the soul, and symbols of organizations such as Freemasonry. These gravestones are artifacts that provide clues to the lives of Plymouth's ancestors and the town's history.