Sleepy Hollow Cemetery — Local services in Concord

What an emotional place to visit! Entering the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery through the second gate from Concord's historical center, you'll find signs pointing to the Author's Ridge. On a narrow one way road, you'll quickly reach it - there's room for no more than four or five cars to park at any given time. There's a steep walk to the graves of our beloved famous authors - starting with Hawthorne, followed by Henry Thoreau, Louisa May Alcott and further along is the tomb of Ralph Waldo Emerson. It was lovely to see their graves with tender notes and multiple pencils and pens, even pebbles. It's a beautiful place to honor and remember these wonderful minds that improved our world within their lifetimes. It's a must visit if you're going to Concord MA, and it's open to the public daily from...

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord is more than just a burial ground — it’s a quiet, leafy sanctuary steeped in history. The highlight for many visitors is Authors Ridge, a peaceful hilltop where some of America’s most influential literary voices rest: Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau.

The path up to Authors Ridge winds through a mix of shaded and sun-dappled spots, and when you arrive, you’re greeted by simple, humble gravestones surrounded by offerings left by admirers — pens, pebbles, flowers, and handwritten notes. There’s something profoundly moving about standing there, imagining the words these authors wrote not far from where...

Apparently inspired by the ideas of Emerson and other Transcendentalists, this peacefully beautiful cemetery is a serene woodland. Immaculately green and quiet (we visited on a late summer afternoon), the cemetery's 19th century tombstones spread over undulating terrain amid trim paved pathways. We found and silently paid respects at the family gravesites of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Louisa May Alcott, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau. Apparently it’s a thing to leave pens and pencils at their graves. I guess it’s a well-meaning gesture, but the dead...