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 Dayton National Cemetery Posted by:  DougK
N 39° 44.895 W 084° 15.546
16S E 734835 N 4403409
The Dayton National Cemetery was established in 1867. It contains over 44,000 internments and includes five Medal of Honor recipients. The Dayton Soldiers’ Monument dominates the national cemetery from atop a mound at the center of the landscape.
Waymark Code: WMFFAV
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 10/10/2012
Views: 5
Excerpted from the VA cemetery website:
Dayton National Cemetery, located in Montgomery County, Ohio, was established as the permanent burial site for residents of the Central Branch of the National Asylum for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in 1867. It is one of 11 federal cemeteries affiliated with the system of National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. Management of these facilities was transferred from the U.S. Army/National Home system to the newly created Veterans Administration in 1930.
The single-most visual cemetery construction is the lofty Soldiers’ Monument around which faceted, concentric rows of graves are arranged. Two features found here are common to many older national cemeteries. There are two ornamental 19th-century cannons located at the base of Soldiers’ Monument, and seven “Bivouac of the Dead” verse tablets.
The Dayton Soldiers’ Monument dominates the national cemetery from atop a mound at the center of the landscape. The cornerstone was laid in 1873, and it was completed in 1877. This dramatic structure is composed of a 30-foot marble column on a granite base with an ornamental cap and soldier posed at parade rest. At the corners of the base stand four figures representing the Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery and Navy. The column is especially significant for having been designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe and used on his Bank of the United States building in Philadelphia. Latrobe worked on the White House and U.S. Capitol, and is credited with introducing Greek Revival architecture to America. President Rutherford B. Hayes delivered the dedication address on Sept. 12, 1877, to a crowd of about 22,000. Two ornamental artillery cannons are located at the base of Soldiers’ Monument.
Medal of Honor Recipients resting here:
- Second Lieutenant Henry W. Downs, (Civil War) Company I, 8th Vermont Infantry.
Winchester, Va., Sept. 19, 1864
(Section Q, Row 7, Grave 24)
- Corporal Oscar Wadsworth Field, (War with Spain) U.S. Marine Corps.
Aboard the USS Nashville, Cienfugos, Cuba on May 11, 1898
(Section O-Q, Row A, Grave 9)
- Sergeant George Geiger, (Indian Campaigns) Company H. 7th U.S. Cavalry.
Little Big Horn River, Mont., on June 25, 1876
(Section N, Row 20, Grave 47)
- Seaman John H. James, (Civil War) U.S. Navy.
On board the USS Richmond at Mobile Bay, Ala., on Aug. 5, 1864
(Section 1, Row 19, Grave 58)
- Private Charles A. Taggart, (Civil War) Company B, 37th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry.
At Sayler's Creek, Va., on April 6, 1865
(Section R, Row 9, Grave 14)
Date cemetery was established: 1867
Visiting hours:
Open daily from dawn to dusk.
Office Hours:
Monday thru Friday 8:00AM to 4:30PM
Website pertaining to the cemetery: [Web Link]
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Visit Instructions:
Please submit a photo(s) taken by you of your visit to the location (non-copyrighted photos only). GPS photos are also accepted with the location in the background, and old vacation photos are accepted. If you are not able to provide a photo, then please describe your visit or give a story about the visit.
We would also like to hear about any of your deceased family members who may be laid to rest in the cemetery.
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