Former USCT Burial Ground (Historical Marker)

Here follows the inscription written on this trailside historical marker:

We are not contrabands, but soldiers of the U.S. Army. We have cheerfully left the comforts of home, and entered into the field of conflict, fighting side by side with the white soldiers…

As American citizens, we have a right to fight for the protection of her flag, that right is granted, and we are now sharing equally the dangers and hardships in this mighty contest… We ask that our bodies may find a resting place in the ground designated for the burial of the brave defenders, of our countries flag.

Excerpt from USCT petition to Major Edwin Bentley, Surgeon in Charge, L'Ouverture Hospital, December 27, 1864

Former USCT Burial Ground
Rather Die Freemen Than Live To Be Slaves

This corner of the cemetery was probably reserved for members of the U.S. Colored Troops, some of whom were veterans of battles like the siege of Petersburg and the Battle of the Crater. In 1864, a group of USCT convalescing at L'Ouverture Hospital petitioned for a burial alongside their white comrades-in-arms in the proper soldiers' cemetery. Their request was granted, and the coffins of 118 USCT were relocated in January 1865 to the military burial ground, now Alexandria National Cemetery.