The Marietta National Cemetery in Marietta, Georgia was established in 1866 to provide a resting place for the 10,000 Union soldiers killed during Sherman's Atlanta Campaign. And you did read that correctly, ten thousand. While national cemeteries were originally created to honor Union soldiers killed during the Civil War, they are now national memorials to all U.S. veterans. At the Marietta National Cemetery, there are an additional 8000 graves from World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam. (There is a separate cemetery for the Confederates a short distance from this one pictured here. The next time I am in Marietta, I will try to visit there and get photos of that one also. History is something that should be preserved and remembered, I believe.)
If you are American and are reading this, I hope that the mention of a national cemetery will remind you of the famous speech by Abraham Lincoln given at the dedication of the National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Known as the Gettysburg Address it is an incredible piece of writing. At the Marietta National Cemetery, there is a large stone with these words written upon it. I hope that this is so for all the National Cemeteries in the USA.
If only I could express how moved I was after our visit here! My husband and son were both with me and I know they felt the same way. This cemetery is only a short distance from the "square" in Marietta, which is now a very trendy, busy spot with shops and restaurants and yet, the Marietta National Cemetery is just steps away. (We have only one other national cemetery in the state of Georgia, in Andersonville, which is one that I need to visit and tell you about.)
Civil war exacts a terrible price.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up, it was always called "The War Between The States". I noticed in my reading it is called the American Civil War. I never once heard it like that as a kid.
DeleteSo sad and moving... the saddest thing about any war memorial or cemetery dedicated to soldiers is that they keep being filled with new victims of new wars year after year after year... When will they (we!) ever learn...
ReplyDeleteI wish you could have walked with us here! We were all moved by this resting place. We hope to see the Confederate one next time. And yes, it is very sad to think of the graves every day added all over the world.
DeleteDear Kay, thank you for posting this information on the national cemetery in Georgia. It is kept so well, which is what all those who fight our wars deserve. I've never been to Marietta nor Andersonville. However, I did, many years ago, read a book about the Confederate prison there in Andersonville. It really brought home to me the horrors of the Civil War. It was written by one of my favorite authors at the time--MacKinlay Kantor. Peace.
ReplyDeleteThe prison in Andersonville was brutal. I have never seen it myself, although at one time as a teenager I didn't live too very far from it. I hope to visit it one day. And thanks very much for your comment. Peace to you!
DeleteI had to memorize the Gettysburg speech in 6th grade and we all had to recite it individually before the class. That was torture for me because of stage fright.
ReplyDeleteOh, poor you! I was always memorizing things just because I loved them so...poems, hymns and scriptures. I would not have liked to have recited them in front of people though!!
DeleteVisiting any cemetery is moving, but those of our war dead are especially so.
ReplyDeleteI agree. You know I do!
Deletehttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098769/
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Burns
Hi Kay...I don't know if you've watched any of the Ken Burns documentaries streaming on Netflix...they are fantastic. Burns' documentary on the American Civil War is brilliant and well worth your time.
His one called "The West" is brilliant, too. I binged on a few of Ken Burns' docos last year...he has me hooked.
Oh yes, Lee, of course I have! The one on the Civil War is from ...it was from a while back, so I just looked it up...it was from 1990 and I saw it then! (And one of the voices is Holly Hunter, a local Conyers girl, she was a year behind me at the same high school!)
DeleteI think I have seen all of the Rick Burns, the Country Music one was the latest one that he did and I only wish my Dad could have watched that with me. I also liked the baseball one a lot!
NOW...if you want to see an AMAZING documentary, one of the BEST things EVER...see if you can find the documentary by his brother, Ric Burns about the Donner Party. I just looked it up, and it was from 1992. I am not kidding, it is GREAT! AND it is narrated by one of my favorites, DAVID McCullough, who is also a great author! (Remember me going on and on about the book, "The Wright Brothers"? David McCullough wrote that!)
So...yes, I do know Ken Burns ...and his brother! :-)
Like Lee above I too love Ken Burns documentaries. Everyone is excellent, so I add my recommendation to hers. I love spending time in any cemetery, but do find National Cemeteries very moving. Have been to many. Perhaps the two that touched me the most would be The Presidio in San Fran. and Arlington National Cemetery.
ReplyDeleteSandy, I would dearly love to visit Washington, D.C. I want to see the monuments and also Arlington National Cemetery. For someone who loves history, I really must get myself there one day.
DeleteVery neat, spacious graveyard/memorial. Must employ a lot of caretakers as not a leaf in sight, despite the trees. Be a good job in dry weather, working out in the open air rather than stuck all day in an office.
ReplyDeleteIt is a beautiful spot. It is hilly, and one side, you see the blue of the mountains on the horizon of North Georgia and just west of Marietta is Kennesaw Mountain, and east is Stone Mountain. (I need to do a post about Kennesaw Mountain and the Civil War, look it up if you like...the Great Locomotive Chase.)
DeleteVery beautiful and it is right and fitting that we should remember the dead in this way. But heartbreaking to think about all the other lives that were so broken by these deaths. My husband loved the Gettysburg Address and often had his computer science students use it in writing programs to analyze it.
ReplyDeleteSee? I might not be the best writer in the world but I know good writing when I read it or hear it! And yes, it is terrible to think of all the suffering from the Civil War. It took a very long time for Georgia to recover, not just from the toll of the deaths but the destruction of the land and railroads.
DeleteFurther to my response above, Kay...I'm presently in the middle of watching another Ken Burns' documentaries...this one is on the origins of country music.
ReplyDeleteLike the rest of his documentaries, this one, too, is excellent.
The actor Peter Coyote, once again, is the narrator.
Oh YES!!! See my reply above!! I loved the Country Music one!! I cannot tell you how much, he treated the subject with great respect and I am telling you, as I was growing up, a lot of people made fun of country music. If only my Dad could have watched it with me!
DeleteI like the voice of Peter Coyote also!
Yes...I've always liked Peter Coyote's voice...and his narrating in the documentaries is great.
DeleteThe ones on the Roosevelts are terrific, too....any with Ken Burns' name on them I will watch.
I'll have to seek out those by Ric Burns...in particalar his one about New York.
I love country music, Kay...always have. My music tastes are wide and varied...a "catholic" taste as some would describe it. :)
Hey Lee! You know I love music too, I am working on another post about music right now! :-)
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