Battleground National Cemetery

Battleground National Cemetery, located at 6625 Georgia Avenue, NW, was established shortly after the Battle of Fort Stevens in the summer of 1864. The battle, which lasted two days (July 11 through July 12, 1864) marked the defeat of General Jubal A. Early's Confederate campaign to launch an offensive action against the poorly defended Nation's Capital. The Battle of Fort Stevens was also to gain notoriety as being the only military action in which the Commander in Chief (President Abraham Lincoln) came under direct fire from an enemy force. With a combined total casualty figure of over 900 killed or wounded during the conflict, 41 of these (Union) soldiers who fought and died bravely in Fort Steven's defense were interred in a specially created cemetery dedicated by Abraham Lincoln. Battleground National Cemetery, located one-half mile north of Fort Stevens, is one acre in size and one of our Nation's smallest national cemeteries. The entrance to the Cemetery is flanked by two 6-pounder, smoothbore guns of Civil War vintage.