Week 24 – #43. Single Tree

January 15, 2016 by tnwaltz 6 Comments

This single tree is located in the Chattanooga National Cemetery, established in 1863 by an order from Major General George Henry Thomas after the Civil War Battles of Chattanooga, as a place to inter Union soldiers who fell in combat. 75 acres of land was initially appropriated from two local land owners, but later purchased. It was officially named Chattanooga National Cemetery in 1867. By 1870 more than 12,000 interments had been made, most of whom were unknown. Many nearby battlefield burials were also reinterred in Chattanooga, including nearly 1,500 burials from the Battle of Chickamauga.

During World War I several German prisoners of war who died while in captivity were buried in Chattanooga National Cemetery. After the war, the German government paid to have other POWs disinterred from Hot Springs National Cemetery and moved to Chattanooga.

Chattanooga National Cemetery was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.

Originally the site was expected to close for new burials in 2015. However, due to a recent expansion project that will add the capacity for more than 5000 interments, the cemetery is now expected to be available for burials until 2045.