National Park Service to Commemorate Memorial Day at Fort Harrison National Cemetery
Richmond National Battlefield Park, in cooperation with the Department of Veterans Affairs, is sponsoring a Memorial Day program and wreath-laying to honor and remember those who have died in our nation’s service—especially those soldiers and sailors from the Civil War. This annual event is scheduled for Monday, May 26, at 12:00 p.m., at the Fort Harrison National Cemetery, on the Fort Harrison battlefield. The cemetery is located at 8620 Varina Road, two miles south of Route 5 and eight miles south of Richmond. More than 800 Civil War soldiers are buried at the Fort Harrison National Cemetery.
Maj. Gen. Donald R. Gardner, USMC (ret.), will speak at the cemetery. Gardner’s Marine Corps career began in 1955 and extended to 1994. Assignments as Commanding General, III Marine Expeditionary Force; Commanding General 3rd Marine Division; and Commanding General, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, are among the many highlights of his service to the country.
Gen. Gardner’s talk is a part of the national park’s continuing commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War in the Richmond area. This spring marks the 150th anniversary of the Overland Campaign around Richmond, and the park’s events span May 23 through June 14.
The public is invited to attend this free event.
The park will also be commemorating Memorial Day weekend with a special program at Cold Harbor on Saturday, May 24, 2014 as part of the 150th anniversary of the 1864 Overland Campaign. More information about that program can be found online on the park’s website: http://www.nps.gov/rich/parknews/reverberations.htm.
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The Fort Harrison battlefield is one of the 13 sites protected by Richmond National Battlefield Park where key Civil War battles took place in 1862 and 1864. The park also hosts five visitor centers and a driving tour of the battlefields along an 80-mile route through Hanover, Henrico, and Chesterfield counties. A full day is required to experience the entire battlefield park. The main park visitor center is located at Historic Tredegar (470 Tredegar Street in Richmond) and provides museum exhibits, audio-visual programs, and orientation services to help plan a visit to the battlefields. For additional information, contact Richmond National Battlefield Park at 804-226-1981, or via the internet at www.nps.gov/rich or www.Facebook.com/RichmondNPS.
