Ledge Cemetery

Ledge Cemetery, also known as the Cemetery under the Ledge,[1] is a historic cemetery in Yarmouth, Maine, United States.[2] Dating to 1770, it stands on Gilman Road, around 450 feet (140 m) southwest of the older and smaller Pioneer Cemetery.[3] Some headstones bear dates earlier than 1770, for many burials — such as that of Revd. Nicholas Loring — were removed from the older cemetery[4]

Ledge Cemetery
The cemetery in 2022
Details
Established1770 (1770)
Location
Gilman Road
Yarmouth, Maine
CountryUnited States
Coordinates43.7847°N 70.1757°W / 43.7847; -70.1757
Owned byTown of Yarmouth
Size2.5 acres (1.0 ha)
Find a GraveLedge Cemetery

The original First Parish Congregational Church, known as the Old Ledge Meetinghouse, stood near the site between 1730 and 1818. Its first pastor was Reverend Ammi Ruhamah Cutter. Tristram Gilman, for whom Gilman Road is named, was the fourth pastor. He served in the role for forty years, and was buried in the Ledge Cemetery upon his death in 1809, aged 73. His wife, Elizabeth Sayer, is buried beside him.[5]

Several sea captains are also interred here, including those from the Drinkwater family.[6] Captain Theophilus Drinkwater, son of Allen and Hannah Drinkwater, gave his name to nearby Drinkwater Point Road.[7]

Of a settlement that originally contained a school, a tavern and a cemetery, only the cemetery and the ledge doorstep of the church remain.

Notable burials
  • Ammi Ruhamah Cutter (1705–1746), first pastor of the Old Ledge Meetinghouse
  • Reverend Nicholas Loring (1711–1763), second pastor of the Old Ledge Meetinghouse; died in the role[8]
  • Honorable Jeremiah Powell (1720–1784), in the now-unmarked Powell tomb behind that of deacon Jacob Mitchell[1]
  • Jacob Mitchell (1696–1784), deacon
  • Tristram Gilman (1735–1809), fourth pastor of the church that formerly stood on the site, namesake of Gilman Road
  • Captain Cushing Prince Jr. (1786–1869), sea captain
  • Captain Reuben Prince (1792–1870), sea captain
  • Captain Theophilus Drinkwater (1792–1872), namesake of Drinkwater Point Road[7]
  • Giles Loring (1813–1893), shipwright
  • Looking south across the cemetery toward Broad Cove
    Looking southwest across the cemetery toward the northern tip of Broad Cove
  • The headstone of Tristram Gilman, the fourth pastor of the former Meetinghouse under the Ledge
    The headstone of Tristram Gilman, the fourth pastor of the former Meetinghouse under the Ledge
  • An information board marking sites of interest in and around the two cemeteries
    An information board marking sites of interest in and around the two cemeteries

References
  1. Collections and Proceedings of the Maine Historical Society, Maine Historical Society (1899), p. 76
  2. Cemeteries in Yarmouth – Town of Yarmouth official website
  3. Ancient North Yarmouth and Yarmouth, Maine 1636-1936: A History, William Hutchinson Rowe (1937)
  4. The Maine Genealogist and Biographer: A Quarterly Journal, Volumes 1–3 (1875)
  5. Yarmouth Revisited, Amy Aldredge
  6. A Seafaring Legacy: The Photographs, Diaries, Letters, and Memorabilia of a Maine Sea Captain and His Wife, 1859–1908, Julianna FreeHand, Alice Drinkwater, Sumner Drinkwater (1981), p. 4 ISBN 9780394517711
  7. "Old Times: a magazine devoted to the preservation and publication of documents relating to the early history of North Yarmouth, Maine"
  8. "North Yarmouth, Maine. First Church" – Congregational Library & Archives
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