Tucked away behind an AMC Theatre on U.S. Route 1 in New Brunswick, New Jersey, lies a monument to a woman whose legacy is as intriguing as it is haunting. Mary Ellis, a fierce feminist and South Carolina native, was laid to rest in a spot that now finds itself perched atop a parking lot, standing on a 7-foot-high pyramid of stone, silently watching over moviegoers and shoppers.
Born in the late 18th century, Mary Ellis was known for her independence and strength. She owned property in New Brunswick and was even noted to have voted in city elections long before women won the right to vote. But her story doesn’t end there. After a local politician, James Schureman, claimed part of her land to build a street, Ellis responded with a bold act of defiance—renaming the new Schureman Street as “Oppression Street” with a sign in protest. She eventually left downtown New Brunswick and moved to a quiet area overlooking the Raritan River, a place called Mount Hemlock, where she lived until her death in 1828.
Ellis’ body isn’t the only one at the site, there are multiple bodies buried in the makeshift parking lot tomb.
Local legend weaves a romantic tale around her choice of burial site. Supposedly, Ellis fell in love with a sailor who promised to return, and she would wait at her riverside property for him to come back. He never did, but Ellis stayed true to her vigil, looking out toward the river for years. This tragic love story inspired comparisons to the 1972 hit “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” by Rutgers University students who formed the band Looking Glass. The song tells of a bartender in love with a sailor whose heart belongs to the sea. Although the band denied a direct connection to Mary Ellis, the parallels are hard to ignore.
In 1956, the once peaceful gravesite had been neglected, with Mary Ellis’ gravestone toppled into the ground. As businesses grew around the area, including the construction of the Raritan Playland Amusement Park and later a Great Eastern Department Store, the grave was left in a peculiar state. Attempts to relocate the grave were abandoned due to legal complications, and over the years, the gravestone became something of an afterthought—a pit in a parking lot, gathering debris.
By the 1980s, the site was part of the Route 1 Flea Market, and Ray Travis, alongside the family that owned the property, made efforts to preserve the graves. They spent over $1,000 filling in the pit with dirt and moving the gravestone to ground level. However, when the site was eventually redeveloped into a Loews Theatre (now an AMC), the parking lot was re-graded, leaving Mary Ellis’ tomb elevated above the surrounding asphalt.
Today, the grave towers over the parking lot, a strange and poignant reminder of a time long gone. As New Brunswick continues to change around her, Mary Ellis’ final resting place remains intact, a fitting tribute to a woman who never let anyone—or anything—stand in her way.
