Mohamed Bughrara

In the Old North Cemetery, at least 14 stones going as far back as the 1700s were knocked over or broken. The property is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Police in Portsmouth are searching for the vandals who damaged more than a dozen antique headstones.

Officer Matt Loureiro from the Portsmouth Police Department stated about the situation, “Our DPW actively mows the lawn at that site weekly, and they’re pretty vigilant and familiar with the site so they were able to ascertain that something was a little bit off and when they look a little bit further they noticed there was some damaged headstones.” 

There are Revolutionary War troops and enslaved African-Americans buried there. Portsmouth police think the damage occurred in the week preceding September 16.

If anyone has any leads or information in regards to this situation, please contact the police department as soon as possible.