As the first and only pre-20th century burial ground in Somerville, Milk Row Cemetery was created in 1804 on land sold by Samuel Tufts to Timothy Tufts and others. Several members of the Tufts, Stone, and Rand Families are buried here. A Civil War monument reported to be the first in the nation erected by citizens in 1863 to honor soldiers who died in the Civil War was raised on a plot donated by Enoch Robinson, eminent inventor and designer of Somerville’s notable Round House. It was used infrequently after 1842 upon the opening of Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge. 

In 1736, Somerville voted to provide funds for two schools, one on Milk Row and the other near Alewife Brook. No actual schoolhouse existed until after the Revolution, when land was taken to build the Milk Row School adjacent to the current cemetery where Market Basket now stands. It is likely that students attended only a couple of days a week with half days on Wednesdays, (just like their 21st century counterparts). 

Join our docents at the cemetery, who will answer questions, guide you around the headstones, and provide more historical information about this important site.

Cost: FREE