Kerkhof van Christ Church te Cambridge before 1876

This is a photograph titled ‘Kerkhof van Christ Church te Cambridge’ by William James Stillman. Cemeteries occupy an important place in our social history. They reflect changing attitudes to death, religion, and the way societies commemorate their dead. Considered in its cultural context, this image might tell us something about how the elite members of Cambridge, Massachusetts, saw themselves in relation to wider society. The gravestones suggest an established community with a sense of its own history. This may have been a period of relative stability. But historical sources might reveal hidden social tensions. The layout of the cemetery itself could also be revealing. Who was allowed to be buried here and who was excluded? What does this say about the social hierarchies of the time? Careful historical investigation could reveal more about how institutions like Christ Church shaped the social landscape of Cambridge, Massachusetts and how photography could be used to document these spaces.