Historically Speaking

Historically Speaking

 Arlington Cemetery, photo taken in 1867.

ARLINGTON NATIONAL 

CEMETERY

How did it become this hollowed ground we know today?

Is there a more hallowed piece of ground on earth than Arlington National Cemetery?  Though the souls resting there are no more precious than the souls buried across the United States, throughout Europe, the world, and in the seas, it is nearly impossible to imagine anyone in America and beyond who does not know about Arlington National Cemetery.  The chalk-white grave markers that seem to go on forever evoke a solemnness that borders on grief.  Realizing that every marker represents and identifies our honored war dead, someone’s father, mother, son, daughter, husband, or wife.  It is a sacred place deserving of the utmost honor and respect always.

Were you ever taught the story of its origins?  Who was the first person buried there?  Who gave it the name Arlington?  How many graves are there in Arlington Cemetery?

The best place to start is in the beginning, and so I shall.  Time and space do not allow for the entire story. So, I shall give as much information as possible in my time and space.  If you want to learn more, I suggest the biographies of John Parke Custis, George Washington Parke Custis, and George and Martha Washington.  

Our story began in 1781 when George Washington Parke Custis was only six months old.  It was then that he was informally adopted and raised by his grandmother, First Lady Martha Washington, and his step-grandfather, President George Washington, you may have heard of them.  George Washington Parke Custis, “Wash,” as he was called, grew to manhood at Mount Vernon, VA, and felt a great attachment to his adopted grandfather.  He is seen in Edward Savage’s 1789 painting of the President and First Lady Washington, his small hand placed on the globe.

Painting showing President and Mrs. George Washington with young George Washington Parke Custis standing beside the president.

If President George Washington loved his step-grandson so much, why you might ask didn’t he adopt him legally?  I asked that question myself and found the reason to be that after the death of GWP Custis’ father, his mother remarried a man named David Stuart, a physician.  As Wash’s legal stepfather, he held onto the young boy’s guardianship, making it impossible for President Washington to adopt him legally on paper.  But it is said that President Washington loved him as though he was his own son.

In 1802, at the age of 20 or 21 years old and still a single man, “Wash” began construction of the home he would call Arlington House on land he had inherited from his natural father, John Parke Custis.  The property was known at that time as Mount Washington.  It was renamed Arlington House in honor of an early Custis ancestral plantation on the Eastern Shore.

With his Arlington House still unfinished, and still living in Mount Vernon, he married Mary Fitzhugh in 1806.  When Arlington House was finished in 1818, GWP Custis intended it to not only be his home but also a memorial to his beloved adopted grandfather, the great George Washington, which means Arlington House was the first memorial to America’s first president.

George Washington Parke Custis and his wife, Mary Fitzhugh Custis, lived at Arlington House until their deaths in 1853 and 1857, at which time the now famous Greek Revival-style mansion filled with many of President George Washington’s important historical items such as furniture, correspondences, books, his precious silver, and other items was inherited by their only living child, Mary Randolph Custis, who would become Mrs. Robert E. Lee (I’m assuming you have heard of him as well.  

The General and Mrs. Lee lived at Arlington House until 1861 when General Lee resigned from the Union Army and Virginia seceded from the Union.   General Lee then soon took command of the Virginia State Military while Mrs. Lee took safety elsewhere at her husband, General Lee’s request.  He expected Arlington House to be taken over by Union forces due to its strategic location overlooking the U. S. Capitol, and he was proven correct.

Arlington House inside Arlington National Cemetery grounds.

In 1864, the property was placed up for auction by the U.S. Government due to failure to pay taxes.  A tax commissioner purchased the property on behalf of the government for military, charitable, and educational purposes.  

According to the National Cemetery website, General Lee’s son, Custis Lee, sued over the confiscation of the property. In 1882, the Supreme Court ordered the land returned to General and Mrs. Lee’s family.  The following year Congress purchased the entire 1,100-acre estate outright from George Washington Custis Lee for $150,000.

On June 15, 1864, the Arlington House property and 200 acres of surrounding land were designated as a military cemetery.   The first burial at Arlington National Cemetery was that of Private William Henry Christman of Pennsylvania, who lies in Section 27, Lot 19. 

One of the first things I get asked when I talk about Arlington Cemetery is, “What is the address of Arlington National Cemetery?”  The answer is quite easy.  It is simply Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.  Should you ever need to find it on your GPS, that is all that you will need.  Next question… How much does it cost to visit the cemetery?  It doesn’t cost anything to visit, but you might want to take the tour bus.  There is just so much to see.  The area is so vast, but don’t forget that this is hallowed ground and give it the respect it commands.  You’ll quickly be reminded if you don’t.

Arlington Cemetery is now a 624-acre site (approximately the size of 472 football fields).  It is the final resting place of more than 400,000 souls.  While the vast majority of those interred there are soldiers from all branches of the military, a small number of others are buried there.  

 The oldest military grave at Arlington is that of William Christman, a Private from the 67th Pennsylvania.  He was laid to rest on May 13, 1864. 

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier may be the most well-known memorial in all of Arlington National Cemetery.  It began with one unknown soldier of WWI who was interred in a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery presided over by President Warren G. Harding on Veterans Day in 1921.  Then in a similar manner, an unknown soldier from WWII was chosen to be interred there.  In 1958, again, an unknown soldier of the Korean War was interred at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  The last unknown soldier to be interred was of the Vietnam War in 1984.  However, he did not stay unknown for long.  On May 14, 1998, the remains of the unknown soldier of the Vietnam War were exhumed and tested, revealing him to be Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, who was shot down near An Loc, Vietnam, in 1972.  His family chose to have him reinterred in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, MO.  Instead of adding another unknown soldier to the Vietnam War crypt, the crypt cover has been replaced with one bearing the inscription, “Honoring and Keeping Faith with America’s Missing Servicemen, 1958-1975.”  

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has been guarded 24/7 since 1937.  The guards come from the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, aka “The Old Guard,” which has served the USA since 1784.  It is the oldest active infantry unit of the military.  They keep watch over the Memorial Tomb every minute of every day, no matter the weather, even when the cemetery itself is closed for inclement weather.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Today it is the grave of three unknown soldiers and has evolved to represent the memory of all military members missing throughout American history.

President John F. Kennedy and the eternal flame is another famous gravesite.  The Kennedy plots include First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Robert F. Kennedy, Sen. Ted Kennedy and other Kennedy family members.  It is well worth honoring their gravesites with your visit, with no politics involved. 

The Eternal Flame honoring President John F. Kennedy’s gravesite.

West Virginia has two National Cemeteries encompassing 89.7 acres, both located at Grafton, WV.  I want to cover the history of that cemetery next week.  

Thanks for honoring our precious heroes by reading this article.  

Until next week, God bless.

Patricia Richards Harris, President

Doddridge County Historical Society