Our Cemetery

Burials in the cemetery date from 1729. The oldest legible tombstone in the cemetery is dated 1736. The cemetery was consecrated in 1738 and includes the graves of many prominent people. It remains an active cemetery and burial plots are available.

The Rev. Dr. Henry Melchior Muhlenberg (September 6, 1711 – October 7, 1787), the Patriarch of American Lutheranism, and his wife Anna are buried under a marble slab outside the north wall of Old Trappe Church.

Next to them is the tomb of their son, Major General Peter Muhlenberg (October 1, 1746 – October 1, 1807). Peter Muhlenberg was an American clergyman, Continental Army soldier during the American Revolutionary War, and political figure in the newly-independent United States.

Governor Francis R. Shunk, who was born in Trappe and became Governor of Pennsylvania in 1844, is buried in Augustus’ Cemetery. Citizens of the Commonwealth erected an elaborate monument to him in 1851.The Reverend Franklin Clark Fry (August 30, 1900 – June 6, 1968), President of the United Lutheran Church in America and President of the World Council of Churches, is buried in the cemetery.

The Reverend Franklin Clark Fry (August 30, 1900 – June 6, 1968), President of the United Lutheran Church in America and President of the World Council of Churches, is buried in the cemetery.