In Watertown, within Mt. Auburn Cemetery, is this monument for Senator and abolitionist, Charles Sumner.
Mt. Auburn Cemetery is located at the boundary between Cambridge and Watertown, along Mt. Auburn Street, and near the intersection with Belmont Street. After entering, be sure to get a map at the visitor center ($1). The grave is nearest Arethusa Path, which is off Walnut Ave.
The monument is a full length stone mass that appears a lot like a casket. On one side is the name, Charles Sumner. On the other side are the dates:
"Born January 6, 1811
Died March 11, 1874"
There is a design with an 'S' at one end. Partial columns are at each corner, supporting the top surface.
Charles Sumner was a known politician. Several people influenced his life and view as he grew up, including his father, Charles P. Sumner, who was a lawyer and Sheriff of Suffolk County and hated slavey, Minister William Ellery Channing, and classmate friend, Oliver Wendall Holmes. He graduated from Harvard in 1830 and formed a partnership in a law firm. Over the years, he made speeches. One was against the Mexican-American War around 1845, and, later, against the annexation of the former Republic of Texas. He became involved in the organization of the Free Soil Party, which opposed the nomination of Zachary Taylor - a slave owner - from being elected President. In 1851, he was elected U.S. Senator by the Massachusetts General Court.
As a Senator, he started low key, but then started to vent his ideas. He opposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the Fugitive Slave Act. That was bad enough for some, but in his speech, "Crime Against Kansas," he attacked the authors, Andrew Butler and Stephen A. Douglas. Feeling that his family was disrespected, U.S. Congressman, Preston Brooks, cousin to Butler, went up to Sumner and beat him to a cane to near death. Sumner had to withdraw and it took about two years until he could return. The incident further divided the views on slavery.
During the U.S. Civil War, he continued to advocate for the freeing of slaves, trying to influence Abraham Lincoln and made an passioned speech at the Massachusetts Republican Convention in Worcester in 1861.
After the war, he fought to establish rights to African Americans, now-freed, including voting rights.
When he died, his body was laid in state under the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. Thousands came to pay their respects.
Other Sources:
Wikipedia (Charles Sumner);
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