Pam Peterson was the executive director at the Marblehead Museum for many years, retiring in 2018. She is now the chair of the Marblehead Historical Commission. Peterson also writes a biweekly column, Marblehead Chronicles, about Marblehead history for the Marblehead Current newspaper. She is a longtime member of the Old Burial Hill Oversight Committee and helped to organize the Harris Street Cemeteries Oversight Committee, established in 2024. Her interests in preservation led to a study of Marblehead's cemeteries. Discovering the stories of ship captains, merchants, ministers, heroes and slaves buried in thirteen burial sites throughout the town led to this book.