| Cemetery Number | NT019 |
| Town | NEWPORT |
| Cemetery Name | ST. JOSEPH'S OLD CATHOLIC CEM. |
| Find A Grave (Opens in New Tab) |
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| Graves List | Display Graves List |
| Location | MT. VERNON & BARNEY ST. |
| State | RI |
| Direction | NW |
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| Size in Feet | 45 |
| Size in Feet | 30 |
| Inscriptions | 24 |
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| Exist? | YES |
| Last seen date? | |
| Newest | 1853 |
| Oldest | 1828 |
| Vandalism | N |
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| Comment | Although currently linked with St. Mary's Catholic church, this cemetery
was originally set out for St. Joseph's, the first Catholic church in Rhode
Island, which was formed in 1828. Its stones commemorate early Irish
immigrants, most of them in the prime of life, giving their original town
and county in Ireland. The church grew to become St. Mary's, and the first
building (a former schoolhouse) was sold. The "Newport Mercury" for Feb.
27, 1864 says: "Workmen are at present busy in stripping off the boards and
taking up the floor, previous to its removal, of the old Catholic Church on
Mt. Vernon St. It was sold at auction to Mr. Michael Butler in Perry St.,who intends using the boards in the erection of small tenements, a class of house now much needed" (index card at NHS).
The marble stones were laid down many years ago. The Museum of Newport Irish History restored the cemetery in 1999, restored and up-righted the gravestones, and installed an informational plaque on the Barney Street side of the lot.
Bertram Lippincott III published transcriptions and a brief history of the church in "Rhode Island Roots," Dec. 1990, pp. 109-111). |
| Condition | fair |
| Enclosure | no enclosure |
| Gate | no gate |
| Growth | grass-well kept |
| Terrain | level |
| Cemetery Location |
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| Cemetery Burial Map |
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