Old Episcopal Burying Grounds

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Purchased in 1832 by Christ Church, the Old Episcopal Burying Grounds (OEBG) is Lexington’s oldest surviving cemetery. The old graveyard has been called “Lexington’s Westminster Abbey” due to the many famous citizens buried here. No one has been interred here since 1870.

From June to August 1833, Lexington lost 500 of its 7,000 residents, due to the 1833 cholera epidemic. William “King” Salomon, known by locals as the town drunk, laid dozens to rest here when no one else would bury them. The only person of color buried in the OEBG is London Ferrell, a former slave, one of only three ministers who did not flee Lexington during the epidemic.

This small gabled Gothic Revival cottage was built in 1867 and stands in the center of the burying ground. Tradition holds it was designed by Lexington architect John McMurtry as a chapel.