Old North Church crypt comes alive after 10-month, $1.2 million restoration project

In the crypt of Boston’s oldest surviving church, one may expect to find spider webs, dirt and other signs of a rotting interior.

But that’s not the case at Old North Church anymore, as guests are now greeted by a pristine space which contains 37 tombs, the final resting place for 1,100 people.

Old North Illuminated, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the historic landmark, and the National Parks Service have completed a 10-month restoration and preservation project of the crypt.

Workers put the final touches on the $1.2 million endeavor on Wednesday, installing eight restored original wooden tomb doors. The National Parks Service funded half of the work and provided project management, said Nikki Stewart, executive director of Old North Illuminated.

Dozens of workers were involved in the project which focused on restoring the crypt’s masonry and wood surfaces, and excavation for an accessibility ramp, Stewart said.

“It is exciting for us to see the space looking so well cared for,” she said. “The doors are just beautiful, the way they’ve been refinished. But looking at the brick today, and seeing how well it’s been repointed, having that assurance that this space is preserved now is really important to us.”

Stewart said she’s not sure when the last time work had been done to the crypt but expects it to be “many decades” ago. Now that the project is completed, she believes the renovated crypt will last “quite some time.”

A main focus of the project included repointing the mortar, which had degraded severely over the years, to prevent moisture from continuing to seep in, Stewart said. That allowed for the opportunity to restore 15 original doors, she said.

Tours were shut down during the project, with the crypt closed from last December through the end of August. Old North is offering special after-hours tours Oct. 26 – 31 at 5:30 and 6:15 p.m., with guests learning about the people buried there and the latest archaeological discoveries.

“It is a really special experience for our visitors,” Stewart said. “This allows them to see the original doors which gives the sense of what the space looked like historically.”

The project is part of a larger endeavor that looks to make the crypt accessible to everyone, as officials are in process of a two-year effort to install a ramp for those with wheelchairs.

Opened in 1723, Old North didn’t have space for a graveyard in the tight North End neighborhood. Nine years later, a single tomb was excavated under the sanctuary, with additional tombs added over time, according to officials.

Burials continued through 1872, a discovery archaeologists made during the project, Stewart said.

Captain Samuel Nicholson, the first commander of the USS Constitution, is one of the notable people interred in the crypt.