Soldiers Home Foundation

Most prominent in the tranquil grounds is Wood National Cemetery, the final resting place of some 37,000. Originally part of the National Asylum for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, it was designated as a federal cemetery, Wood National Cemetery, in 1937 in honor of General George Wood.

The first burial occurred in 1871 and the cemetery has since become the final home for U.S. soldiers and veterans from the War of 1812 to the current battle of Iraqi Freedom. The cemetery holds four Medal of Honor recipients; members of the first black federal infantry unit, the famed 54^th Massachusetts; several Buffalo soldiers; and U.S. Colored Troops veterans. The cemetery also contains plaques in addition to its beautiful white granite headstone markers.

Most outstanding is the cemetery’s 65-foot tall Soldiers & Sailors Monument (Bldg. 120), depicting a Civil War soldier at “parade rest” and erected in 1903. The New England granite monument is surrounded by four cannons, facing north, south, east and west, and a flag flown continuously.

Nearby is the cemetery’s Reception House, called the Roundhouse (Bldg. 57). Erected in 1900 and was used for cemetery offices for many decades. The Roundhouse is currently being restored by the Soldiers Home Foundation to house an historical display about the cemetery.

The cemetery was surrounded not only by the Soldiers Home recuperative village of 25 support buildings but by massive park grounds that once welcomed 300,000 visitors annually by the end of the 19^th Century. Today, park feelings remain strong, though only one of four original lakes still holds water—Lake Wheeler, a two-acre lake that once featured a toboggan run and rowboat rentals.

It is important to note that, though not part of the application because it falls outside the period of significance, this tranquil setting is bordered to the east by a National Geologic Landmark, an intact Silurian Rock Reef, designated in 1837 and a National Historic Landmark in 1992