Cypress Hills National Cemetery

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Cypress Hills National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City, New York. It encompasses 18.2 acres, and as of the end of 2005, had 21,098 interments. It is administered by the Long Island National Cemetery.

1 History
2 Notable monuments
3 Notable interments
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] History

A section of Cypress Hills Cemetery was deeded to the federal government in 1870 and became Cypress Hills National Cemetery. It was already a military section of the cemetery which had the interments of some 3,000 Union soldiers, and over 400 Confederate prisoners of war who had died in local hospitals and camps.

In 1884, 15 additional acres were purchased to accommodate reinterments from other cemeteries, and though the area was created to honor the American Civil War dead, it now has interments dating from the American Revolutionary War to the present, including several two time Medal of Honor recipients.

Cypress Hills National Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.

[edit] Notable monuments

The French Cross monument, a 12 foot granite cross was erected in memory of 25 French sailors who died while on duty in American waters during World War I.
The Eagle Monument, erected in 1934. It is a stone eagle, with wings spread wide, placed atop a stone pyramid.
The British Navy Monument, erected in 1939 in memory of some British Revolutionary War soldiers whose remains were discovered in the early 1900s and reinterred at Cypress Hills National Cemetery in 1909.
The 1881 Garfield memorial marks the former location of a commemorative oak tree that was planted in honor of President James Garfield, after he was assassinated.

[edit] Notable interments

Sergeant John Maples Adams, Medal of Honor recipient for action during the Boxer Rebellion.
Coxswain John Cooper, aka John Laver Mather, two time Medal of Honor recipient. The first for action on board USS Brooklyn during the Battle of Mobile Bay, and the second a year later while serving on Rear Admiral Henry K. Thatcher's staff in Mobile, Alabama.
Sergeant Wilbur C. Colyer, Medal of Honor recipient for action at the Battle of Verdun during World War I.
Sergeant Daniel Joseph Daly, two time Medal of Honor recipient. The first for action in the Boxer Rebellion, and the second for action in Haiti in 1915.
Private James Dougherty, Medal of Honor recipient for action aboard USS Carodelet in Korea in 1871.
Private Christopher Freemeyer, Medal of Honor recipient for action in Montana Territory during the Indian Wars.
Sergeant Major Frederick W. Gerber, Medal of Honor recipient for 32 years of service to the US Army during the Indian Wars.
Sergeant Patrick Golden, Medal of Honor recipient for action in Arizona Territory during the Indian Wars.
First Sergeant Edward P. Grimes, Medal of Honor recipient for action in Colorado Territory during the Indian Wars.
Sergeant Bernhard Jetter, Medal of Honor recipient for action during the Indian Wars.
Chief Watertender Johannes J. Johannessen, Medal of Honor recipient for peace time service aboard USS Iowa.
William "Wild Bill" Lovett, leader of the White Hand Gang, veteran of World War I.
Sergeant John Martin, aka Giovanni Martini, the last white man to see Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer alive at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
Lieutenant Mons Monssen, Medal of Honor recipient for peace time service aboard USS Missouri.
Sergeant John Nihill, Medal of Honor recipient for action in Arizona Territory during the Indian Wars.
Quartermaster Third Class Anton Olsen, Medal of Honor recipient for action aboard USS Marblehead during the Spanish-American War.
Private Henry Rodenburg, Medal of Honor recipient for action in Montana Territory during the Indian Wars.
Sergeant Valentine Rossbach, Medal of Honor recipient for action at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House during the Civil War.
Chief Watertender Eugene P. Smith, Medal of Honor recipient for peace time service aboard USS Decatur
Gunner’s Mate First Class Wihelm Smith, Medal of Honor recipient for peace time service aboard USS New York.
Gunnery Sergeant Peter Stewart, Medal of Honor recipient for action during the Boxer Rebellion.
Private James W. Webb, Medal of Honor recipient for action at the Battle of Bull Run during the Civil War.
First Sergeant Henry Wilkens, Medal of Honor recipient for action in Montana Territory during the Indian Wars.
Seaman Louis Williams, aka Ludwig Andreas Olsen, two time Medal of Honor recipient. Both medals were for peace time service aboard USS Lackawanna.