1 Best Sight in Newport County and East Bay, Rhode Island

Common Burying Ground

Among those buried in this graveyard, which dates back to 1665, are several governors, a Declaration of Independence signatory, famous lighthouse keeper Ida Lewis, and Desire Tripp, whose unusual February 1786 gravestone commemorates the amputation of her arm. Many tombstones were made in the stone-carving shop of John Stevens, which opened in 1705 and still operates today. The historic African American section of the cemetery, which contains the graves of slaves and freedmen alike, is known as "God's Little Acre." The Newport Historical Society sometimes offers walking tours.