Cold Harbor National Cemetery
Encyclopedia
Cold Harbor National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery
in Mechanicsville, Hanover County, Virginia
. It encompasses 1.4 acres (5,665.6 m²), and as of the end of 2005, had 2,110 interments. It is administered by the Hampton National Cemetery
.
, an American Civil War
engagement. Interments were collected from a 22 miles (35.4 km) area, taken from the battlefields and field hospital sites of Cold Harbor, Mechanicsville (Beaver Dam Creek), Gaines's Mill, and Savage's Station
. The land was appropriated in April 1865 during the first post-war search and re-burial operations conducted on local area battlefields, but not fully purchased until the cemetery was officially established the following year. Another search for buried and unburied remains occurred in 1867 and yielded over 1,000 full and partial skeletons that had been missed the previous year. Due to space limitations at Cold Harbor these remains, of which only a handful were identified, were re-interred in the larger Richmond National Cemetery
.
In the book Magnolia Journey: A Union Veteran Revisits the Former Confederate States, Russell H. Conway stated that in 1870 the remains of Union soldiers were still being unearthed from the battlefield by poverty-stricken local residents searching for Minie Ball
s to sell as lead
scrap
in nearby Richmond, Virginia
. Although reported to cemetery superintendent Augustus Barry, who was mortally ill at the time, it does not appear that another search and reburial operation was made. Conway feared that many soldiers remains may have ended up in Richmond's fertilizer
factories mixed in with the bones of dead artillery
horse
s. Soldier remains at Cold Harbor have been occasionally discovered by farmers and construction crews well into the 21st century.
Room for the burial of American veterans of later periods was made when the original design of the cemetery was altered by removing several paths and walkways that bisected the cemetery. The cemetery is now closed to further interments.
in Hampton, Virginia
. Cemetery maintenance and upkeep is provided by the Veterans Administration through private contractors. Unlike the nearby Glendale National Cemetery
the Richmond National Battlefield Park
of the United States Department of the Interior
does not maintain the cemetery or utilize its masonry lodge as a visitor's center. The lodge itself is a two story residence with attic and basement similar in design to those in other Civil War era National Cemeteries. It was designed by Montgomery C. Meigs
.
in 1995.
United States National Cemetery
"United States National Cemetery" is a designation for 146 nationally important cemeteries in the United States. A National Cemetery is generally a military cemetery containing the graves of U.S. military personnel, veterans and their spouses but not exclusively so...
in Mechanicsville, Hanover County, Virginia
Mechanicsville, Hanover County, Virginia
Mechanicsville is a census designated place in Hanover County, Virginia, United States. The population was 34,648 during the 2000 census.-Civil War history:...
. It encompasses 1.4 acres (5,665.6 m²), and as of the end of 2005, had 2,110 interments. It is administered by the Hampton National Cemetery
Hampton National Cemetery
Hampton National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in the city of Hampton, Virginia. It encompasses , and as of the end of 2005, had 27,799 interments.- History :...
.
History
Cold Harbor National Cemetery was established in 1866 on the site of the Battle of Cold HarborBattle of Cold Harbor
The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought from May 31 to June 12, 1864 . It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign during the American Civil War, and is remembered as one of American history's bloodiest, most lopsided battles...
, an American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
engagement. Interments were collected from a 22 miles (35.4 km) area, taken from the battlefields and field hospital sites of Cold Harbor, Mechanicsville (Beaver Dam Creek), Gaines's Mill, and Savage's Station
Battle of Savage's Station
The Battle of Savage's Station took place on June 29, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, as fourth of the Seven Days Battles of the American Civil War. The main body of the Union Army of the Potomac began a general withdrawal toward the James River. Confederate Brig. Gen. John B. Magruder pursued...
. The land was appropriated in April 1865 during the first post-war search and re-burial operations conducted on local area battlefields, but not fully purchased until the cemetery was officially established the following year. Another search for buried and unburied remains occurred in 1867 and yielded over 1,000 full and partial skeletons that had been missed the previous year. Due to space limitations at Cold Harbor these remains, of which only a handful were identified, were re-interred in the larger Richmond National Cemetery
Richmond National Cemetery
Richmond National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located three miles east of the city of Richmond in Henrico County, Virginia. It encompasses , and as of the end of 2005, had 9,322 internments. It is currently closed to new interments...
.
In the book Magnolia Journey: A Union Veteran Revisits the Former Confederate States, Russell H. Conway stated that in 1870 the remains of Union soldiers were still being unearthed from the battlefield by poverty-stricken local residents searching for Minie Ball
Minié ball
The Minié ball is a type of muzzle-loading spin-stabilising rifle bullet named after its co-developer, Claude-Étienne Minié, inventor of the Minié rifle...
s to sell as lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
scrap
Scrap
Scrap is a term used to describe recyclable and other materials left over from every manner of product consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has significant monetary value...
in nearby Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
. Although reported to cemetery superintendent Augustus Barry, who was mortally ill at the time, it does not appear that another search and reburial operation was made. Conway feared that many soldiers remains may have ended up in Richmond's fertilizer
Fertilizer
Fertilizer is any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. A recent assessment found that about 40 to 60% of crop yields are attributable to commercial fertilizer use...
factories mixed in with the bones of dead artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s. Soldier remains at Cold Harbor have been occasionally discovered by farmers and construction crews well into the 21st century.
Room for the burial of American veterans of later periods was made when the original design of the cemetery was altered by removing several paths and walkways that bisected the cemetery. The cemetery is now closed to further interments.
Administration and Maintenance
The cemetery is administered by the Hampton National CemeteryHampton National Cemetery
Hampton National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in the city of Hampton, Virginia. It encompasses , and as of the end of 2005, had 27,799 interments.- History :...
in Hampton, Virginia
Hampton, Virginia
Hampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
. Cemetery maintenance and upkeep is provided by the Veterans Administration through private contractors. Unlike the nearby Glendale National Cemetery
Glendale National Cemetery
Glendale National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the city of Richmond, in Henrico County, Virginia. It encompasses , and as of the end of 2005 had 2,064 interments. It is closed to new interments.- History :...
the Richmond National Battlefield Park
Richmond National Battlefield Park
Richmond National Battlefield Park commemorates more than 30 American Civil War sites around Richmond, Virginia, which served as the capital of the Confederate States of America for the majority of the war...
of the United States Department of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
does not maintain the cemetery or utilize its masonry lodge as a visitor's center. The lodge itself is a two story residence with attic and basement similar in design to those in other Civil War era National Cemeteries. It was designed by Montgomery C. Meigs
Montgomery C. Meigs
Montgomery Cunningham Meigs was a career United States Army officer, civil engineer, construction engineer for a number of facilities in Washington, D.C., and Quartermaster General of the U.S. Army during and after the American Civil War....
.
Notoriety
Cold Harbor National Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1995.
Notable monuments
- Monument to the Unknowns, a 5 feet (1.5 m) marble sarcophagusSarcophagusA sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
erected by the federal government in 1877 to commemorate the 889 unknown UnionUnion (American Civil War)During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
soldiers buried in two trench graves at the back of the cemetery. - The Pennsylvania Monument, a 30 feet (9.1 m) granite spire with a statue of a soldier at the top, was erected in 1909 by the commonwealth of PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, and dedicated to its regiments lost at Cold Harbor. - The 8th New York Heavy Artillery Monument, a granite block with a bronze plaque listing the names of those from the detachment who died at Cold Harbor, erected in 1909 by the state of New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Notable interments
- Sergeant Major Augustus Barry, Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient for action in the Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Sergeant Major Barry was also the first superintendent of Cold Harbor National Cemetery.
See also
- United States Department of Veterans AffairsUnited States Department of Veterans AffairsThe United States Department of Veterans Affairs is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. It is the United States government’s second largest department, after the United States Department of Defense...
- United States National CemeteryUnited States National Cemetery"United States National Cemetery" is a designation for 146 nationally important cemeteries in the United States. A National Cemetery is generally a military cemetery containing the graves of U.S. military personnel, veterans and their spouses but not exclusively so...