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Prince Hall Mystic Cemetery
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Prince Hall Mystic Cemetery
Nearest city	Arlington, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°24′36.73″N 71°8′7.46″W / 42.4102028°N 71.1354056°W / 42.4102028; -71.1354056
NRHP reference No.	97001473
Added to NRHP	November 25, 1998

The Prince Hall Mystic Cemetery, also known as the Prince Hall Cemetery, is a historic cemetery located on Gardner Street, Arlington, Massachusetts. It may be the only remaining African American Masonic cemetery in the United States.

The cemetery is a burial place for members of the Prince Hall Grand Lodge F & AM, founded by Prince Hall in Boston in 1776. Prince Hall Freemasonry was the first African American Masonic group in the United States. In 1864, Grand Master William B. Kendall deeded this site to his lodge. The cemetery was dedicated in 1868 and put in trust to be used exclusively as a Prince Hall Freemasonry burial ground. Records indicate it was in use until about 1897 when it fell into disuse.

As time passed it was forgotten until its rediscovery in 1987. It was rededicated in 1990 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. Today the cemetery is the last extant cemetery associated with Prince Hall Masons. It contains a small park with a monument. A 1988 survey found remains of the original gate and an obelisk.

Current use

Beginning in 1990, Masons from the Prince Hall Grand Lodge have held an annual ceremony on Memorial Day. This event features remarks by the Grand Matron and other Masonic representatives and has frequently included an address by the president of the Arlington Historical Society.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Arlington, Massachusetts

References

1. Arlington Historical Society web page

External links

• Town of Arlington History Facts
• Prince Hall Mystic Cemetery at Find a Grave

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• Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
• Prince Hall Freemasonry
• Cemeteries in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
• Buildings and structures in Arlington, Massachusetts
• National Register of Historic Places in Arlington, Massachusetts
• African-American cemeteries in Massachusetts
• Masonic cemeteries
• Cemeteries established in the 1860s