The Soldiers' National Monument stands in the center of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg. (National Park Service)

To properly bury the Union soldiers who died at Gettysburg, the "Soldiers Cemetery" was established on the battleground near the center of the Union line. The brainchild of concerned Gettysburg citizens, the project began soon after the close of the battle as rains and wind wore away the soil from the shallow graves that dotted the battlefield. Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin supported the project and funds were provided by the commonwealth to purchase ground on Cemetery Hill. Some of the money was also used to pay Samuel Weaver and his laborers for the grisly task of removing Union dead from inadequate grave sites that covered the battlefield and hospital sites. The many southern dead would remain on the field until the 1870's, when they were removed to cemeteries in the south.

The cemetery dedication, November 19, 1863 (National Archives)

The cemetery was designed by landscape architect William Saunders, founder of the National Grange. The Soldiers National Monument was erected in the central portion of the cemetery, its marble sculptures overlooking the circle of graves around it. The Soldiers National Cemetery was finally completed in 1872, and administration of the cemetery was turned over to the care of the Federal government. The United States War Department planted many of the decorative trees that still adorn the cemetery grounds, paved walkways through the cemetery, and placed tablets with stanzas from Theodore O'Hara's stirring poem, The Bivouac of the Dead throughout the grounds.

There were a number of post-war burials that took place in the cemetery, most having been veterans of military service from Gettysburg and Adams County. They were buried within the historic semi-circle of graves. By the late 1880's, it was decided to begin an outer line of burials, outside of the historic sections, and a plot was designated on the north end of the cemetery for later burials. This later section was active through the Spanish-American War in 1898 and World War I. The necessity for expansion of burial plots in the cemetery began soon after World War I, and more areas were designated for interments in 1942. The cemetery annex was added on the north side of the original cemetery grounds in 1968. Bordered by Evergreen Cemetery and property in private ownership, the cemetery can no longer expand and it is closed to new burials.

The Baltimore Street entrance to the cemetery. (National Park Service)

Today, the Gettysburg National Cemetery is the final resting place for American veterans from all of this country's major wars and conflicts. The cemetery is also the site of numerous monuments and memorials including the New York Monument, the first statue to Major General John F. Reynolds, and the "Friend to Friend Memorial" in the National Cemetery Annex. Among the interments in the cemetery are the remains of General Charles Collis, former commander of the 114th Pennsylvania Infantry who built a summer home at Gettysburg, and Captain William E. Miller, 3rd Pennsylvania Cavalry. Miller won the Medal of Honor for his bravery and initiative during the cavalry battle east of Gettysburg on July 3.

The national cemetery is the setting for several special events throughout the year including Memorial Day in May and the commemoration of the Gettysburg Address, held on November 19.

Former astronaut Neil Armstrong addresses the crowd of veterans and families during Memorial Day services on May 30, 2005. Among those in attendance was a group of wounded veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, transported to Gettysburg for the day from Walter Reed Army Hospital. (National Park Service)

In November 2003, the Friends of the National Parks at Gettysburg sponsored a luminaria of lights in the cemetery during the annual Remembrance Day weekend. The Friends organization plans to continue the luminaria as an annual tradition on that weekend.

The Gettysburg National Cemetery is located adjacent to the National Park Service Visitor Center on the Taneytown Road, Rt. 134, and is open from dawn to dusk.

For more on the Soldiers' National Cemetery at Gettysburg, visit the page on the cemetery in our Virtual Tour.