Graves of Revolutionary Generals

The Continental Army experienced a wide range of leadership throughout the American Revolutionary War and all too often, its officers argued, complained, and jockeyed for rank. But there were also many officers, including generals, that embodied steady and competent leadership throughout the conflict. Many of these men, including some Europeans who volunteered to serve the American cause, proved their bravery and resilience, despite setbacks and personal errors. Today, the generals of the Continental Army are buried throughout the United States and even overseas, oftentimes surrounded by family and even the soldiers who fought alongside them.

Graves of Revolutionary Generals

The leaders of the Continental Army are buried all along the eastern seaboard, from Maine to Georgia. Furthermore, some are buried in Europe- far from the nation that they helped create. The following is a list of some of the top generals who served in the Continental Army, followed by their final resting place:

• George Washington – Mount Vernon (Mount Vernon, VA)
• Nathanael Greene – Johnson Square (Savannah, GA)
• Casimir Pulaski – Monterey Square (Savannah, GA)
• Anthony Wayne – Old Saint David Church Cemetery (Wayne, PA)
• Charles Lee – Christ Church (Philadelphia, PA)
• Hugh Mercer – Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia, PA)
• Horatio Gates – Trinity Church (New York City, NY)
• William Alexander, Lord Stirling – Trinity Church (New York City, NY)
• Baron Von Steuben – Steuben Memorial State Historic Site (Remsen, NY)
• John Glover – Old Burial Hill Cemetery (Marblehead, MA)
• Artemas Ward – Mountain View Cemetery (Shrewsbury, MA)
• Benjamin Lincoln – Hingham Cemetery (Hingham, MA)
• Henry Knox – Thomaston Village Cemetery (Thomaston, ME)
• John Sullivan – Sullivan Family Cemetery (Durham, NH)
• Israel Putnam – South Cemetery (Brooklyn, CT)
• James Varnum – Oak Grove Cemetery (Marietta, OH)
• Baron Johann DeKalb – Bethesda Presbyterian Churchyard (Camden, SC)
• Marquis de Lafayette – Picpus Cemetery (Paris, France)
• Thaddeus Kosciuszko – Wawel Cathedral (Krakow, Poland)

While I personally have not visited all of these gravesites, my goal is to one day do so. In the mean time, I’ve highlighted some of them below.

General George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)

General George Washington took command of the American forces under an Elm Tree on Cambridge Common, Massachusetts, on July 3rd, 1775. He served faithfully for the entirety of the war and proved his bravery and mettle on more than one occasion in combat. Despite some tactical mistakes early in the war, he persevered and embodied a fabian strategy in order to preserve his forces and in an attempt to wear down the British war effort. In 1789, Washington was unanimously elected the first President of the United States and he served two terms before stepping down. Washington died in his home (Mount Vernon) on December 14, 1799, possibly due to a combination of epiglottitis and the excessive bleeding that his doctors performed (although some historians and medical experts have offered other possible causes). While the intention was for George Washington to be buried in a chamber beneath the rotunda of the U.S Capitol building, it was still under construction at the time of his death. Additionally, Washington’s last Will and Testament provided that he be buried at Mount Vernon and called for a new brick tomb to be constructed. The current tomb at Mount Vernon was completed in 1831 and that same year, Washington’s body was moved into it from an old family vault.

General Nathanael Greene (August 7, 1742 – June 19, 1786)

General Nathanael Greene was born in Rhode Island and although raised a Quaker, he embraced the patriot cause. Despite his social standing, he served as a private in the local militia unit, the Kentish Guards, under command of James Varnum. After the fighting at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, Nathanael Greene left his Homestead (which still stands) for Massachusetts to join the Provincial Army. Two weeks later, he was commissioned a Brigadier General and head of all state troops by the Rhode Island Legislature. Greene served faithfully throughout the entire war and rebounded from poor strategic decisions (such as the decision to maintain forces at Fort Washington, which were captured by the British). General Washington considered Greene as one of the best leaders in the nascent Continental Army. After a stint as Quartermaster General, Greene headed south to lead the scattered American forces against British General Charles Cornwallis. His leadership and exploits in the southern theater are legendary and his attitude is best captured by his quote: “we fight, get beat, rise, and fight again.” After the war and a few years living in near destitution in Newport, Rhode Island, General Greene was gifted land and plantations by the state of Georgia, as a thanks for his service. It was at his Mulberry Grove plantation in Georgia on June 19, 1786, that Nathanael Greene died of sunstroke. He was initially buried in Savannah’s Colonial Park Cemetery in the Graham Vault (named for the Royalist Lt. Governor John Graham) along with British Lt. Colonel John Maitland; however, in November 1902, his remains were moved and placed under a new monument in Johnson Square in downtown Savannah.

General Casimir Pulaski (March 6, 1745 – October 11, 1779)

General Casimir Pulaski was a Polish nobleman and military leader who volunteered his services to the American war effort. He arrived in Marblehead, MA on July 23, 1777, and was soon approved by General Washington to serve as a volunteer with the calvary. General Pulaski fought in the Battle of Germantown and wintered with the Continental Army at Valley Forge; however, his aggressive personality and push for different tactics (which caused some friction between him and some fellow officers) led to Pulaski being sent to the southern theater of war in early 1779. In October 1779, General Pulaski served with the Franco-American forces that attempted to dislodge the British from Savannah. During a calvary charge on October 9th, Pulaski was mortally wounded by grapeshot and died thereafter.

Over time, there was controversy over where and when Pulaski died (some believed he was buried at sea). One belief was that he died and was buried at nearby Greenwich Plantation. After the gravesite that he was believed to be buried in was exhumed and examined, it was determined to be his remains. In 1854, General Pulaski’s remains were placed in a metallic case underneath a large stone monument in Monterey Square in downtown Savannah. Pulaski’s horsemanship and leadership in the Continental calvary earned him the nickname, “the father of the American calvary.”

John Sullivan (February 17, 1740 – January 23, 1795)

General John Sullivan was the son of Irish immigrants who settled in New Hampshire, where he was born. In the months preceding the American Revolution, Sullivan operated a law practice out of Durham and despite relations with New Hampshire’s Royal Governor, John Wentworth, he supported the patriot cause. On December 14, 1774, patriot forces raided Fort William and Mary in Portsmouth, New Hampshire for its gunpowder, after they were warned by Paul Revere that British troops were on the way from Boston to reinforce the garrison. Sullivan participated in a second raid on December 15th to capture the fort’s cannon and other military arms. Some of the crucial gunpowder captured by the patriots was hidden away in a meeting house in Durham, right by Sullivan’s house and eventually used during the Battle of Bunker Hill (today that site is marked by a stone monument to General Sullivan).

Throughout the war, General Sullivan seemed to be everywhere. He served in Canada in the spring of 1776 and then was in charge of American forces on Long Island when the British invaded and attacked in August 1776 (he replaced an ill General Nathanael Greene), where he was captured and eventually exchanged. Additionally, he took part in the attack on Trenton in December 1776, fought in the battles of Brandywine and Germantown, and was in command of all forces during the Battle of Rhode Island in August 1778. Then in the summer of 1779, Sullivan led an expedition against the Iroquois in upstate New York. After many long raids and violent warfare, General Sullivan retired from the Continental Army in 1779 and returned to his home in New Hampshire. By 1780, he was elected to serve as a delegate for New Hampshire in the Continental Congress for a one-year term. After the war, he served in a variety of governmental positions in New Hampshire (to include “president,” aka governor) and was revered by his community. He died on January 23, 1795, and is buried in the Sullivan Family Cemetery in Durham, New Hampshire. Of note, this small family cemetery is on private land located behind his 1717 house (which is a private residence).

General Benjamin Lincoln (January 24, 1733 – May 9, 1810)

General Benjamin Lincoln was heavily involved in the years leading up to revolution: from 1765-1771 he served as a Hingham town selectman, in 1772 he was promoted to Lt. Colonel in the local militia and was also elected as a representative of Hingham in the provincial assembly, and similarly was elected to the Massachusetts Provincial Congress (after the provincial assembly was dissolved). After the war began and as militia swarmed around Boston, Lincoln worked tirelessly to ensure the thousands of militiamen were provided with supplies. In January 1776, he was promoted to Major General of the Massachusetts militia and eventually joined Washington’s forces, participating in the Battle of White Plains in October 1776. On February 14, 1777, Lincoln was commissioned as a Major General in the Continental Army and in October 1777, he served in the Battle of Saratoga, where he was wounded by a musket ball in his ankle. In September 1778, Lincoln was appointed commander of the Southern department and after participating in a failed siege of Savannah in October 1779, he moved the American army to Charles Town, South Carolina. It was in Charles Town that General Lincoln was forced to surrender his entire army to British forces on May 12, 1780- a galling defeat that opened up the southern states to British incursion (Lincoln was paroled and exchanged in November 1780). After returning to the Continental Army, General Lincoln participated in the British surrender at Yorktown on October 19, 1781. Because British General Cornwallis pleaded illness and didn’t attend the surrender ceremony, British General Charles O’Hara (second-in-command) presented Cornwallis’ sword to General George Washington; however, Washington promptly denied the slight and directed General O’Hara to present the sword to General Benjamin Lincoln- Washington’s second-in-command. From 1781-1783, Lincoln served as U.S. Secretary of War and continued to be involved in politics after the war (he even received electoral votes during the 1789 presidential election!). He died in Hingham, MA on May 9, 1810, and is buried at Hingham Cemetery.

General Artemas Ward (November 26, 1727 – October 28, 1800)

Artemas Ward was a native of Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. In his early years, he quickly rose in social status and graduated from Harvard in 1748. In the 1750s, he was elected justice of the peace and also served in the Massachusetts Provincial Assembly. During the French and Indian War, Ward served as a major in the 3rd Regiment, which was comprised of men mostly from Worcester County (they were stationed in western Massachusetts). In the 1760s, Ward returned to the Provincial Assembly and worked with men such as John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and James Otis. He was very outspoken against the parliamentary taxes imposed on the American colonies and embraced the Patriot cause. When fighting broke out in Lexington & Concord on April 19, 1775, Ward was quickly notified. He left his house in Shrewsbury and headed towards Boston to take command of the scattered militia forces gathering outside the city (he is often considered the first Commander-in-Chief of the American army- if you could call it that). On June 17th, the Continental Congress appointed Ward a Major General, second-in-command behind General George Washington. During the siege of Boston, General Ward worked feverishly to transform the militia into an organized fighting force. He remained in the Eastern theater when General Washington marched the army to New York in the spring of 1777. From 1779-1785, he served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives (in 1785 he served as Speaker). From 1780-1781, he also served as a delegate to the Continental Congress. His political career peaked when he served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1791-1795. General Artemas Ward died in 1800 and is buried in the beautiful Mountain View Cemetery in Shrewsbury, MA. His original home, which was built in 1727 by his father, still stands only a few minutes from the cemetery (General Ward moved into this house in 1763 and made additions in 1785).

General John Glover (November 5, 1732 – January 30, 1797)

Prior to the revolution, John Glover was an esteemed merchant in the bustling coastal town of Marblehead, Massachusetts. In the years leading up to conflict, he proved to be a staunch patriot and worked alongside Elbridge Gerry and Azor Orne on the Committee of Correspondence. Glover was also very active in the local militia and served as commander of the 21st Massachusetts Regiment (out of Marblehead) by the spring of 1775. In June of that year, he marched his unit towards Boston to support the Provincial Army. Glover’s militia unit became the 14th Continental Regiment and due to their maritime skills, became known as the “amphibious regiment.” Throughout the revolution, Glover and his men served in crucial roles: in August 1776, Glover and his Marbleheaders successfully evacuated the Continental Army across the East River from Long Island to Manhattan following the devastating defeat known as the Battle of Brooklyn Heights (also the Battle of Long Island). Additionally, his hardened men maneuvered General Washington and his men across an ice-choked Delaware River on the night of December 25, 1776. He went on to serve in the Saratoga Campaign in October 1777 and the Battle of Rhode Island in August 1778. After the war he returned to Marblehead and died at his home on January 30, 1797. He is buried in the Old Burial Hill Cemetery in Marblehead, which also served as a filming location for the 1993 movie, “Hocus Pocus.”