“You cannot go to the cemetery
and ask to be enlightened on matters of this kind,
though it would ease my mind considerably
if you could.”
~ William Maxwell
Last week I went on a *hard hat tour* of Poplar Grove National Cemetery.
I love seeing rehabilitation efforts in cemeteries that are in
progress and I love (legally) entering cemeteries that are closed to the public
like that time last year when
I got to go into Odd Fellows Rest in New Orleans.
The top number is the listing; the bottom represents the number of unknown soldiers buried here. |
I found this tour on the National
Parks Service website when I was browsing for adventures for my cemeterians Meet-Up group
to attend. The tour was a “behind the scenes” look at the rehabilitation
project at Poplar Grove National Cemetery. Poplar Grove is one of 14 National
Cemeteries administered by the National Park Service. It is closed for burials
and due to a rehabilitation project the cemetery will be closed into 2017.
A bit of history about this
cemetery is that in 1862 Congress passed legislation
giving the President of the United States the authority to purchase land for
the establishment of cemeteries for soldiers who gave their lives for the
country aka who fought for the Union during the Civil War. This legislation began
the National Cemetery system.
During the Siege of Petersburg, Union soldiers who
were killed in battle were hastily buried near where the battles took place in
the form of mass graves or even shallow graves. There was a civil war going on
so it wasn’t like there were many men who could take their time in these
matters.
This land had been the campsite for the 50th New
York Volunteer Engineers. During the war they constructed a Gothic Revival
pine-log church called Poplar Grove. When looking for a location for a national
cemetery, this seemed like a good place.
When the bodies were disinterred from their hastily
buried plots, many were difficult to identify. After all, the headstones, if
there were any, had been made of wood. This was a similar fate to the 30,000
Confederate dead buried
at Blandford Cemetery in Petersburg, of whom only about 2,000 names are
known.
Here comes a somewhat eerie tale that leads to the
renovation project of today. During the 1930s (read that as the Great
Depression), the superintendent of the cemetery decided to cut (pun intended)
costs by removing the upright grave markers in Poplar Grove National Cemetery,
cutting off the bottoms which had been in the ground, and replacing the top
portions by lying them down flat. This helped grounds crew with maintenance
which has been an ongoing battle in many cemeteries. The 2,220 bottom portions
of the markers were sold to a gentleman who proceeded to build his dream house
out of the materials. Today you can see
this house in Petersburg, Virginia.
the Tombstone house |
When doing a little research on this house, I found a
Facebook page which shows a picture of the fireplace mantle which had been
constructed by the bottom portion of the tombstones. Personally, I find this a little bit crass but I suppose during that time when the country's economy had crashed that one had to make do.
While this was the story the NPS ranger shared,
there are some who believe that the entire markers were removed and that the
names inscribed face inward hidden from the outside. Some believe that the
markers are a bit too large to only be the bottom portions of the grave
markers. Since some believe that desecration is involved, the property is considered
to be haunted. When I drove by, I didn't notice it being creepy but that it was beautifully landscaped.
Today, the cemetery is being completely redone with
new tombstones. It's difficult to tell from the pictures how far this place has come. As it is nearing the end of the renovation project, the grounds look amazing with sparkling white marble stones in place. While we were there, there was even a dedication for one of the interred. I'm certainly going to try to return for the dedication. The cemetery is about an hour from my home but there is the first time in US history that any project of this caliber has been attempted. For the most part, I see cemeteries that are dilapidated; and, I see individuals trying to make do with resources. This is a government-funded project that competed for funding. It's beautiful what they're doing. I wish more cemeteries could receive such support.
Pictures taken in bathrooms |
Since the controversial 1930s occurrence, today the US
government requires that all grave markers that are removed from a national
cemetery be destroyed to the point that they cannot be recognized.
Because this was an active construction site, we
were required to wear hard hats. It was a crazy hot day but I took a moment to
take a picture with the newly renovated bathroom to go in my Facebook album,
Pictures Taken in Bathrooms because apparently that is a thing that I do
*shrug*.