Graveyard No. 1

Graveyard No. 1. . , One of Four Cemeteries at Camp Nelson, This cemetery is one of four documented at Camp Nelson; the others being Graveyard No. 2 (the present Camp Nelson National Cemetery) and two smallpox cemeteries located to the west of U.S. 27. Graveyard No. 1 was described in September 1866 as follows:, "The first yard visited contained upwards of an acre of land and was nearly filled containing soldiers, both white and black, negro women and children, and refugees. The soldiers are buried at either end, the negro women and children and refugees between them. This yard is without the benefit of fortifications and is on the land of Mr. Oliver Perry.", Unfortunately, the number and names of the civilian graves are unknown, but we do know that 217 soldiers were exhumed from here in 1867 and reburied in the Camp Nelson National Cemetery. Given the size and filled state of Graveyard No. 1, it likely still contains hundreds of civilian graves., The women and children buried here include the wives and children of both U.S. Colored Troops and East Tennessee white soldiers who enlisted or were stationed at Camp Nelson. The African-American families came here to escape slavery and attain freedom, while the white Tennessee families came to escape Confederate occupation., In February 2003, specially trained dogs and their trainers from Historic Resources Foundation helped locate this cemetery., (captions) , Civil War cemeteries were temporary. The graves were marked with wooden headboards that rapidly deteriorated. Camp Nelson Cemetery No. 1 probably looked much like this cemetery near a Virginia battlefield., Camp Nelson was not only a military camp; it was a haven for refugees. Many of these refugees were slaves seeking freedom and a better life, such as the young students pictured above. But, former slaves were not the only refugees. White Unionists from East Tennessee fleeing the Confederacy also came to Camp Nelson., White refugees faced harsh conditions and the dangers of being in enemy territory to make their way from Tennessee to Camp Nelson., 1864 Map of Camp Nelson, Some of those people seeking the safety of Camp Nelson soon found an untimely death. The crowded and unsanitary conditions in which many of the refugees lived contributed to a high mortality rate especially among the very young and very old. Note the shanties in the foreground of the "Home for Colored Refugees.” This home housed nearly 4,000 people!, Part of the Civil War Discovery Trail , The Civil War Preservation Trust , Camp Nelson Restoration and Preservation Foundation , The Kentucky Civil War Heritage Trail , The Kentucky Heritage Council