Description of Historic Place

Old Seal Cove Cemetery is a roadside, fenced cemetery located on the east side of Route 776 in Seal Cove, Grand Manan Island. It is situated on sloping grounds bordered on remaining three sides by trees. A majority of the graves are on the south end of the lot with a large vacant area on the north side where the Baptist Church once stood.

Heritage Value

The Old Seal Cove Cemetery is designated a Local historic Place for being the final resting place of many citizens of Grand Manan. Among those interred in this cemetery in the fishing community of Seal Cove are those who have lost their lives to the sea, military servicemen and descendants of United Empire Loyalists and their families. Exact dating of the cemetery is difficult as some headstones have sunk into the ground. The oldest standing headstone is that of William Brown, who died in 1824. The last interment took place in 1997. The surnames of those buried here are still common on the Island today. There are three graves placed outside of the fence; surprisingly, they belong to the family of Samuel Harvey who donated the land on which the cemetery is located.

Source: Grand Manan Archives – Local Historic Places files

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe the Old Seal Cove Cemetery include:
- variety of headstones - obelisks, round-headed, ornate and rectangular - made of various materials, including marble and granite and one wooden cross;
- family plots separated by low stone walls and placed in a somewhat terraced formation;
- majority of headstones facing south, with some facing north, rather than the traditional facing to the east;
- three Harvey family graves placed outside the fence.