A Grave Affair is a cemetery engagement and education practice dedicated to helping people and organizations understand cemeteries as places of history, memory, and ongoing community life. The work centers on thoughtful cemetery tourism, responsible storytelling, and public engagement that respects both the dead and the living. Rather than treating cemeteries as static spaces, A…
MetFern Cemetery in Waltham, Massachusetts is the shared gravesite between Metropolitan State Hospital and the Fernald State School patients. The cemetery was used from 1947 until 1979 with roughly 310 burials, most of which are not easily identifiable at the moment. Headstones have sunk or gone missing, many have deteriorated because of the type of…
My particular passion over the last two years, the Fernald State School was the first institution created in the Western Hemisphere for the care of the developmentally disabled. Founded in 1848 by renowned reformer Samuel Gridley Howe, the institution opened in South Boston as a school to train feebleminded youth. As time went on, more…
Due to the virtuous efforts of a member of the Tewksbury community, Tom Marshall, work has been ongoing for the last two years at the Tewksbury Hospital Pines Cemetery. Tewksbury Hospital started as an almshouse and was opened in May of 1854. What started as an institution for paupers quickly shifted towards those suffering from…
A project born out of my work at the Fernald State School & Metropolitan State Hospital’s MetFern cemetery and the Tewksbury Hospital Cemetery, I have been conducting research to determine the current state of all the state school and state hospital cemeteries in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. At this time, I have visited all of…
Read more Massachusetts State Hospital & State School Cemeteries
2019 marked the 75th anniversary of Richard Cardinal Cushing’s ascension to Archbishop of Boston and 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of his death. Cushing was a man of greatness – he advocated for inter-religious dialogue among denominations and faiths, he ministered to the masses to make the Roman Catholic Church more accessible for the everyday…
Although the Long Island Hospital has long been defunct, the buildings and history remain isolated in the Boston Harbor. Long Island is but a short boat trip away from the mainland of Boston and is the largest island in the Boston Harbor. The island has had numerous functions over its long history, however the most…
Opened on May 1, 1854, the State Almshouse at Tewksbury was a venture by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to provide economical care for state paupers. Originally intended to accommodate 500 residents, by the end of 1854 the almshouse had admitted well over 2,200 paupers, thus necessitating future expansion. Although the virtue of the institution was…
As the co-founder of Paranormal Pin, I’m proud to lead this personal project that combines technology with a lifelong fascination for the supernatural. Paranormal Pin is a mobile app platform designed to make the mysterious world of the paranormal accessible to everyone—from casual enthusiasts to dedicated investigators. With Paranormal Pin, users can explore haunted locations,…
