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New Memorial Arises At Jack Kerouac's Gravesite

At this point, Jack Kerouac has been dead longer than he was alive, but admirers still leave mementos beside his grave in Lowell. (Lisa Poole/AP)
At this point, Jack Kerouac has been dead longer than he was alive, but admirers still leave mementos beside his grave in Lowell. (Lisa Poole/AP)

The Lowell gravesite of native son and Beat generation writer Jack Kerouac is now easier to find.

Workers on Tuesday erected a 3,000-pound granite marker in Edson Cemetery near the nondescript grave marker at the final resting place of the "On the Road" author and his wife, Stella. Kerouac died in 1969 at age 47.

The memorial is engraved with the Lowell native's signature as well as the words "The road is life."

John Sampas, Kerouac's brother-in-law and the executor of Kerouac's estate, was behind the effort to put up the 3-foot-tall memorial.

"I thought it was a great monument to Jack, and I know that Jack would love it," he said. "I know that he wanted to be recognized in his hometown, and this is another way of doing it."

Kerouac is "the most popular resident we have," Lowell Parks and Recreation Commissioner Tom Bellegarde said.

The Cemetery Department's office even has directions to the gravesite for visitors, cemetery clerk Jade Bernis said.

Visitors often leave notes and other memorabilia, which Sampas collects.

"Right on the stone," he said. "Little notes of appreciation. They love Jack."

This article was originally published on October 01, 2014.

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