Ceremony on May 16 Will Honor the Man for Whom Fitchburg Was Named — Buried Penniless and Unmarked for Over Two Centuries

Article written and submitted by the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts (CFNCM). Photos also provided.

ASHBY, MA — More than 230 years after his death, John Fitch — the colonial settler whose courage and civic vision gave the city of Fitchburg its name — will finally receive a proper grave marker. The Ashby Historical Society will hold a headstone dedication ceremony on Saturday, May 16, 2026 at 11:00 AM at the Old Burial Ground at the First Parish Church in Ashby, the small town that was also shaped by Fitch’s life and where he spent his final years.

The headstone was commissioned through donations to the Ashby Historical Society and a grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts (CFNCM), making possible a recognition that has long been overdue.

John Fitch was an instrumental figure in the incorporation of both Fitchburg and Ashby. In January 1764, Fitch and four others traveled to Boston to petition the General Court, and on February 4, 1764, the town of Fitchburg was incorporated and named in his honor.

Three years later, in March 1767, the town of Ashby was similarly incorporated, meaning Fitch, living in the same house throughout, was successively a resident of Lunenburg, Fitchburg, and Ashby. His life, however, did not end in comfort. His estate suffered during the Revolution, his lands were sold, and he spent his final years in poverty and poor health. He died on April 8, 1795, at the age of 87. His grave would have been unmarked, likely in the section of the burial ground reserved for those without means.

Fitch’s life was anything but ordinary. On July 5, 1748, during King George’s War, his garrison home in what is now Ashby was attacked by Native Americans. After a fierce battle in which two British soldiers with him were killed, he, and along with his entire family, were captured and forced to walk to Montreal where they were held prisoner. The following year, at the end of the war, he and his children returned. His wife died during the journey back. Fitch’s name was later described as “a synonym for heroism,” a testament to the man’s reputation among those who knew his story.

The ceremony takes on additional historical resonance given where Fitch rests. Buried nearby is Prince Estabrook, another American whose story was once nearly lost to time. Estabrook was an enslaved Black man and Minuteman Private who fought and was wounded at the Battle of Lexington Green, the opening engagement of the American Revolutionary War. He went on to serve in the Continental Army. He gained his freedom at the conclusion of war and later came to Ashby, where he lived out his remaining days, and was buried in the common lot of the Old Burial Yard. One hundred years after his death, the United States War Department placed a veteran’s headstone at his grave to honor his military service.

Together, the two graves tell a layered and at times difficult story of early America, a founder and an enslaved patriot, each buried without recognition, each now slowly reclaimed by history.

“This dedication is about more than a headstone,” said Stephen Adams, President and CEO of
the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts. “It’s about a community honoring
the full complexity of its origins — and making sure that those who shaped this region are not
simply forgotten.”

Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts

The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts is a public charity serving 33 communities across the region, including the Gateway Cities of Fitchburg, Leominster, and Gardner. The Community Foundation connects donors with community needs and supports local nonprofits through grants, scholarships, and civic leadership.