Here on Farewell and Warner Street, the Common Burying Ground and Island Cemetery are a pair of separate cemeteries that together hold over 5,000 graves. Take a breath and feel the weight of centuries here: the Common Burial Ground was established in 1665 on land given to the city of Newport by John Clarke, and it likely contains the largest number of colonial era headstones in a single cemetery, including the largest number of colonial African American headstones in the United States. The predominantly African‑American northern section is still known locally as "God's Little Acre.
The Island Cemetery was established by the city in 1836 and transferred to the private Island Cemetery Corporation in 1848; many members of Newport’s most prominent families rest here. Among the notable burials you can find are Medal of Honor recipient Hazard Stevens, Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, Commodore Matthew C. Perry, and financier August Belmont. This entire pair of burial grounds was recognized together on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Notice the stones, the dated markers, and the trees that mark this long history stretching past you.