Near Oak Grove in Westmoreland County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

The Burial Ground

Photographed by J. J. Prats, September 5, 2009

1. The Burial Ground Marker

Inscription. Three generations of George Washington’s forebears are buried here. The first burials were made in 1668, when John Washington’s wife Anne and two small children died. During the next thirty years, at least nine more Washingtons—including George Washington’s grandparents—were interred here.

The cemetery today bears no resemblance to the cemetery George Washington visited during his youth. In 1930, the Wakefield National Memorial Association constructed the wall around the grounds, consolidated the graves into a single casket, and interred the remains in a rebuilt vault.

Erected by George Washington Birthplace National Monument, National Park Service.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Colonial Era. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #01 George Washington series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1668.

Location. 38° 11.781′ N, 76° 55.877′ W. Marker is near Oak Grove, Virginia, in Westmoreland County. It is on Bridge Creek Road west of Popes Creek Road (Virginia Route 204). Turn left at the obelisk. The burial ground is a ways on the left. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Colonial Beach VA 22443, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Virginia’s Northern Neck.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in the Tidewater,

and in the Chesapeake Bay Region.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At

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least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: John Washington House (within shouting distance of this marker); Henry Brooks Farm (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Link to the World (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Bay Today (approx. 0.3 miles away); A New World on the Chesapeake (approx. 0.3 miles away); Paradise Found (approx. 0.3 miles away); John Muse (approx. 0.7 miles away); Dairy (approx. 1.1 miles away).

More about this marker. This interpretive panel contains a large black-and-white panoramic photograph captioned, “the cemetery during landscaping in 1930” and a two-color rendition of the Washington crest.

Also see . . . George Washington Birthplace National Monument. A website of the National Park Service. (Submitted on August 5, 2010, by Patrick G. Jordan of Graham, North Carolina.)

The Burial Ground and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, September 5, 2009

2. The Burial Ground and Marker

Inside the Enclosure image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, September 5, 2009

3. Inside the Enclosure

Shaded Gravel Walkway to the Burial Ground image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, September 5, 2009

4. Shaded Gravel Walkway to the Burial Ground

This marker is in the distance, just to the right in the entrance to the enclosure.