Since the early establishment of the First Town Meeting House on this site in 1675, this land has been used as a graveyard, with the oldest legible tombstone dating to 1690. The land is part of the original Woodbridge Charter granted by King Charles II. This is the final resting place for many early, prominent Woodbridge founders, including the Cutters, Freemans, Pralls, Barrons and Bloomfields, to name but a few. Some notable burials include those of a freed slave, Jack, as well as Mary Compton Campbell, the first white child born in Woodbridge in 1668. Other noteworthy graves include those of Woodbridge native, James Parker, who established the first permanent printing press in New Jersey, as well as American patriot and First Presbyterian Church Pastor, Reverend Azel Roe, and Civil War Brigadier General William Barton, of the 48 New York Volunteers. Also buried here are at least 125 veterans from every conflict of our nation. Among the 75 American Revolutionary soldiers interred here, one of the most famous graves belongs to General Nathaniel Heard, who led the Middlesex County Militia to arrest the last Royal Governor of New Jersey, William Franklin, at his Perth Amboy residence on June 19, 1776. The cemetery is listed on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places. It is also listed on the American Presbyterian/Reformed Historical Sites Registry. The cemetery contains some of the best preserved examples of eighteenth century Puritan funerary art in New Jersey. With nearly 3,000 graves, it is one of the oldest cemeteries in the United States.
Additional references:
The First Walking Tour of Woodbridge. A walking tour of historic sites in Woodbridge
Map of Historic Area #1
