General Edward Braddock - Farmington , PA - Out of Place Graves on Waymarking.com

In the 1750's, both the French and British laid claim to the Ohio River Valley. After the British, under Col. George Washington, surrendered at the Battle of Fort Necessity, the French expected that the British would leave claim of the territory. Instead the British planned to attack on the French at Fort Duquesne on the forks of the Ohio River.
In April 1755, Maj. Gen. Edward Braddock was selected to head the expedition and he began the march toward Fort Duquesne with more than 2,000 men, including an aide-de-camp named George Washington.
Despite Braddock's extensive military experience in European-style campaigns, he was ill-prepared for the slow progress of the march through the American wilderness. When they had only reached the ruins of Fort Necessity by the end of June, Braddock divided his army leading a column of about 1200 men ahead and leaving the rest of his army to catch up later. The lead column was only about 8 miles from Fort Duquesne when they met up with a large reconnaissance contingent of French and Indians. The British formed themselves into ordered ranks but the the French forces surrounded and fired on the British from the forest. At the end of the battle, three-quarters of the British lead column were dead or wounded.
Gen. Braddock himself was mortally wounded and died three days later during the British retreat. One of the few officers that survived the attack was Braddock's aide-de-camp George Washington. He had witnessed the slaughter, which included scalping, and was concerned that Braddock's remains not be desecrated. So he had Braddock buried in the middle of the road, and then ordered wagons to pass over the grave to hide it from further disturbance.
Many years later, in 1804, while repairs were being made to the Braddock Road, remains believed to be Braddock's were found by workmen. These were reinterred on a nearby hill and a granite monument was erected to mark the new grave.
Both the original and new graves are found along US Route 40 in southwestern Pennsylvania in one of the three sites that comprises Fort Necessity National Battlefield. The Braddock monument is visible from the Route 40 and the original gravesite is marked and found in the same little park site further down the trace of the Braddock Road.
Fort Necessity National Battlefield Braddock Campaign website: (visit link)

First Name: Edward Last Name: Braddock Died: 07/13/1755 Born: Not listed

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