William Munroe
- Caroline Bigelow
- 7 days ago
- 1 min read
William was born in Lexington, MA on December 19, 1703 to William and Mary (Cutler) Munroe. His grandfather, also William, came to New England from Scotland in 1652, having been banished there as a prisoner of war after the Battle of Worcester. His father was a member of the colonial militia and known as “Ensign Roe”.
William married Sarah Mason in 1733, and they had six children. He was a shoemaker by trade, and served as a town Selectman.
He died of pneumonia in Lexington on August 18, 1747. After his death Sarah married Isaac Bowman, another prominent man in Lexington. His son William was the keeper of the famous Munroe Tavern.
Curiously, the epitaph on his gravestone says he was "the first buried in this burying place". Ye Old Burying Ground was established in 1690, almost 60 years before his death. There were many earlier burials, but he was the first to be buried in the expanded section. The epitaph appears to have been made at a later date and by a different carver than the one who carved his gravestone.
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