FREDERICKSBURG, Va. – The remains of three U.S. soldiers, believed to have died during the first Battle of Fredericksburg in 1862, were formally buried last week in the Fredericksburg National Cemetery. Their discovery during a 2015 excavation project on Sophia Street set off years of archaeological work, historical research, and coordination between the City of Fredericksburg and the National Park Service.
According to the city, the burial took place on May 2 after the remains were identified as those of U.S. soldiers using DNA analysis, radiocarbon dating, and military artifacts such as uniform buttons. In 2017, Fredericksburg officials formally requested that the remains be interred in the national cemetery. Since the cemetery has been closed to new burials since 1945, several investigations were needed to identify a clear burial site — a process delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and not completed until late 2023.
The Fredericksburg National Cemetery, established in 1866 and managed by the National Park Service, holds over 15,000 servicemembers, most of whom died during the Civil War. More than 12,700 of those graves are marked “Unknown,” a designation that will also appear on the newly installed headstone provided by the National Cemetery Administration.
Visitors can honor the soldiers and others buried there during the annual Memorial Day weekend luminaria on Saturday, May 24, 2025, from 8 to 11 p.m. The cemetery is open to the public daily from sunrise to sunset.
