The Last Civil War Cemetery

Well, I don't know if it was the absolute last, but for the troops in the Northern Army of Virginia it was.

Here, just outside of Appomattox Court House, are buried eighteen Confederate soldiers that died within 24 hours of the surrender.

Some of the soldiers are identified; some unknown.  

 
It was after this that the idea of dog tags came into being.  (Did you know why they wear two dog tags?  If a soldier dies, his buddies are supposed to take one of the tags with them and the other they are supposed to - eewww! - jam it between the front teeth of the dead buddy so that when someone comes to remove the dead bodies the soldier can be correctly identified.)

What's that?  A Union soldier?  Yes, he died in those last days of fighting, too.  He was found later and, as they had no way of knowing who he was in order to notify his family, it was decided to bury him here with the others.  There is a small stars and stripes flag on the other side of the headstone with a flower arrangement.

This is me workin' hard to bring you the story.

(Have you ever given thought to what happens after a battle?  The troops move on to fight other battles and leave their wounded and dead for whatever civilians will care for them.  Most able-bodied men were off fighting the war somewhere so guess who got to clean up the mess left behind.  Mmmm-hmmm. Women.  Clara Barton,  Florence Nightingale,  Daughters of the American Revolution, Ladies Memorial Association of Appomattox, etc.  Over the years I have come to believe that it is women that are the glue of civilization, women that hold things together, that bind the generations through efforts to honor the dead, restore architecture and save old buildings from being razed.)

It's a peaceful place.  There's a sign on the gate inviting you in to sit and contemplate, to honor these men and their sacrifice, to never forget...  It's a special place.