Evening journal., 1915-06-12

In their midst Is located one Oh tue
SO national cemeteries provided by
the United States government. This
cemetery, located at Firms Point n.
j.. directly across the river from
here and close TO Fort Mott, n. j., is
visited by thousands yearly.
The cemetery contains about $500
bodies, mostly of Confederate sol
diers, who died at Fort Delaware,
while prisoners of war. The ceme-
terry is in charge of Henry Donald
son, who lives with his family at a
lodge. Mr. Donaldson retired as post
uuartermaster sergeant at Jefferson
Barracks. Mo, about fourteen years
ago. after he had served about 80
years in the army. He was quarter
master sergeant of the Jefferson
Guard and was in charge of the equip
ment of the guard at the Louisiana
Purchase Exposition held at st. Louis.
on entering the cemetery one is
struck by the remarkable beauty of
the place. which covers about two
and one-half acres and contains many
beautiful trees and much shrubbery.
A notice is posted at the entrance
requesting visitors to visit the lodge
in the cemetery. where the superin-
tendent will be found and who gladly
shows all visitors about the cemetery.
A register is kept of all visitors and
this list of names includes people
from every State in the Union. as well
as many foreign countries. Southern
ers visit the place in large numbers,
making the trip to see the beautiful
memorial erected in honor of the
Confederates who are buried there.
Anyone on this side of the river
can easily see the handsome monu-
ment erected about FIVE years ago in
the cemetery by the United States
to mark the burial place of 2,436 Con-
federate soldiers who died at Fort
Delaware while prisoners of war and
whose graves cannot now be individ-
ually identified. The greater part of
these perished from epidemics of
smallpox and other diseases. The
monument IL IS feet in height and
is on a mound as a base. which is
about ten feet high. There are twelve
tablets, one on each of the four sides
of the base of the monument and two
on each of the four sides of the mound
at the base. giving the name. COM
pany. regiment and State of every
Confederate buried in the cemetery.
These tablets contain 2,436 names and
are of great interest to every visitor,
showing the spirit taken by this gov
ernment TO consecrate the memory
of the Confederates who died for their
country.
A few of the names of the regi-
ments that some of the men belonged
to will be of interest. They are the
Thirty-ninth Georgia, Twenty-third
Alabama Hamiltons Tennessee Bat
talon. Thirteenth South Carolina,
Sixty-frst Virginia, Fifteenth John
sons Arkansas. Second Tennessee
Cavalry Philips Legion Georgia Cav
airy, Thomas North Carolina Legion.
Fourth Clinch's Georgia Cavalry. New
mans Tennessee Battalion. Carter's
Virginia Battery, McIntosh's South
Carolina Battery. the First Confed-
crate Cavalry. Nelson's Virginia Ar
tillery and the Twenty Eighth Battal-
ion George Siege Artillery.
The Bodies of the 2.436 Confeder-
ates are buried in six trenches, three
on the north and three on the south
side of the large monument, all
trenches running east and west. Each
trench is $50 feet in length and nine
feet wide. while the trenches are sew
en- feet apart. One hundred and thir-
ty-fve Union dead are buried in three
trenches near the small monument,
each trench being 1873 feet long and
feet wide, all running east and
west.
In all there are 2,6O1 known and
30 unknown buried in this cemetery,
including 105 Union soldiers, 2,4S6
Confederate soldiers, II U. S. army,
buried recently: 36 Confederate sol
diers. Union soldiers. one woman,
three children, one citizen and thirty
unknown. The only civilian grave is
that of a man born in 1897 in Beth
lehem, Pa, who died in 1926. The one
woman is the wife of Captain John
Franklin Tomlin, Company E. Third
New Jersey Cavalry, who was super
intendent of the cemetery for many
years, and who is buried in the Gene
terry One colored man also is bur-
ried in this cemetery, being William
Young. a retired sergeant of the pif-
tenth Cavalry.
There are two national cemeteries
in New Jersey. one being in Bever-
" and the other at Firms Point.
bronze tablet containing Lincoln's
Gettysburg address is at the lodge in
the latter cemetery. A poem written
by an officer of some Kentucky vol
unteers has been found so appropriate
that the government has erected tab.
lets containing this poem in every ma
tional cemetery.
Among the Union soldiers buried in
the cemetery are nineteen Delaware
cans.
A trip to this cemetery cannot helI
but bring to mind historic Fort Della.
ware located in the middle of the
river, between here and the cemetery
II was here that the Confederates
died from diseases while prisoners oi
war and while confined in Fort Della.
ware. Fort Delaware occupied such
an important position in the war his.
tory of the State that an extended
account of that fortress. as il appear
ed when hostilities began, may moi
prove uninteresting. This great cita
del was erected in the center of
green, willOwy island-the Pea Patel
near the head of Delaware Bay. TIL,
island comprises about eighty acre:
of land, most of which at one tim,
was four feet beneath the water level
As early as 1863 the Confederate.
at Fort Delaware began taking tn,
oath of allegiance TO the United States
and in the summer OF that year full,
two hundred of these men were doinf
garrison duty at the fort. Five hun
dred more had taken the oath of al
legiance and we're uniformed and hell
in readiness for anv ecrvfoo tbo 49,