Spirits of ‘76: A Weekend Of Spirited Fun

June 3, 2026 Submitted By Nina Wellford

Spirits of ‘76: A Weekend of Spirited Fun

High Spirits come out on the weekend of June 5 and 6! Old Ship Meeting House and the Hingham Cemetery are collectively sponsoring two occasions celebrating the Revolutionary spirit of 1776: a festive occasion on Friday night time, and distinctive excursions of the Cemetery Saturday morning. Join us for one or each, to lift your spirits and assist protect these two iconic locations for generations to return.

Spirits of ‘76: The Party

Friday, June 5 at 7:00 pm, we meet in Old Ship Meeting House, 90 Main Street, the scene of Hingham’s city assembly from the time it was constructed by Puritans in 1681 till simply after the Revolutionary War. Local historian and nationally-acclaimed creator Jim Conroy will draw parallels between the revolutionary pondering main as much as 1776 and the occasions we face at present, in a short, thought-provoking discuss. The second of Jim’s 5 revealed books, Lincoln’s White House: The People’s House in Wartime, received the celebrated Lincoln Prize, awarded to the perfect e book of the 12 months on Lincoln or the Civil War period, and the Abraham Lincoln Institute’s annual e book award. He is an insightful thinker, with a ardour for the teachings we are able to study from historical past. 

We will then make our method via the cemetery (or on the sidewalks via Hingham Square) to the Ames Chapel, the fantastically restored jewel of a chapel, initially inbuilt 1886. There we might be handled to a toast by Massachusetts Poet Laureate Regie Gibson, who not too long ago wowed the home within the Cemetery’s “Dead of Winter” speaker sequence, with a signature cocktail developed particularly for this event – the Spritz ‘76. A delicious smorgasbord of appetizers and desserts, created by Cohasset’s Fresh Feast, and choices of wine, beer and non-alcoholic drinks will be sure that each party-goer leaves the night fulfilled in physique and soul. Tickets at $100 per individual profit Friends of Old Ship Meeting House and the Hingham Cemetery equally; please buy them at www.hinghamcemetery.org by June 2. 

Spirits of ‘76: The Cemetery Tours

Eileen McIntyre with granddaughter Rosie, this inspiration for the Spirits of ‘76 Cemetery Tour

On Saturday, June 6 at 10 am, Old Ship Meeting House and Hingham Cemetery dive again in time, for an enchanting glimpse into life in Hingham through the years main as much as 1776. Led by Eileen McIntyre, a Hingham resident for 26 years, educated volunteer docents will inform the tales of Hingham residents – some well-known, and a few abnormal residents – who married, raised and misplaced kids, labored onerous and constructed the neighborhood that we take pleasure in at present. 

Eileen has turn into an avid historian since she retired from a high-powered profession in company communications. She is at the moment on the Board of the Friends of Old Ship Meeting House, and he or she ran the speaker sequence at Hingham Historical Society for 5 years. Eileen explains the origins of her concept, “On a walk at Hingham Cemetery last year with my then 6 year-old granddaughter, Rosie, she had lots of questions. I realized that beyond the well-known Hinghamites buried there, I knew very little. I researched two families to answer Rosie’s questions – and then I was hooked. With the 250th coming up I thought, why not tell the stories of some “Spirits of ‘76” buried on this historic cemetery?”

Directors of Hingham Cemetery jumped on the likelihood to showcase the serene grounds that the general public enjoys as a park, cemetery, arboretum and essential historic web site. As was customary on the time of early settlement, the useless had been buried round a city’s Meeting House. From 1672 for about 150 years, the land behind Old Ship Meeting House was privately-owned farmland and a cow pasture. Burials continued “among the grazing farm animals” till in regards to the time that Adam Thaxter started to purchase the land,  incorporating it as Hingham Cemetery in 1838. Over the subsequent 38 years, Thaxter and superintendent John Todd modeled the brand new cemetery on Mt. Auburn, the primary American “Rural Garden Cemetery,” particularly designed and landscaped (and anticipated for use) as a park. 

With the theme of “Spirits of ‘76,” 18 fellow history buffs enthusiastically agreed to be docents, and Eileen got to work. She narrowed her research to 28 families who lived in the years surrounding the Revolutionary War. Some, like Maj. Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, live on in history books and documentary films for his role as George Washington’s 2nd in Command on the Battle of Yorktown, and later his Secretary of War. But do you know that he and his spouse Mary had 11 kids, and he served as Town Clerk, recording minutes of all of the Town Meetings held at Old Ship Meeting House? Others, like Enoch Lincoln, contributed regionally. Enoch (1721-1802), a Glazier by commerce, was a Selectman, then a State Representative, and was married to Rachel Fearing. Their son Amos took half within the Boston Tea Party; son Levi turned an lawyer, a choose and the Attorney General of the United States. We additionally will “meet” mariners, surgeons, a minister, farmers, merchants, a constable and the proprietor of an inn. The tour focuses on the households in graves closest to the Meeting House, however ends close to the one which sparked Rosie’s consideration and put the entire course of in movement. Mary Revere Lincoln, Paul Revere’s daughter, had 13 kids and lived to age 83. 

Spirits of ‘76 begins in Old Ship Meeting House, 90 Main Street, Hingham at 10:00 am, with a short orientation. Small teams will then head off via the historic iron gates into the cemetery, fueled by lemonade and cookies, to observe a 90 minute tour. Tour goers needs to be ready to stroll on uneven floor, and we encourage kids to be in 4th grade or older (no strollers, please). The rain date might be Sunday, June 7 at 1:00 pm. Tickets are $25 per grownup, $5 per youth; Purchase at www.hinghamcemetery.org and on-site on June 6. Proceeds might be cut up between Hingham Cemetery and Friends of Old Ship Meeting House, to protect these historic locations for generations to return.