Cemetery

The cemetery at Fort Worden was established as the final resting place for soldiers who died at the fort and their immediate family members. The first burial among its 360 plots was Pvt. Elisha Webb in June 1902. It now includes veterans from the Spanish-American War through Vietnam, representing all branches of service, as well as the graves of children and infants and two unknown people. In the fort’s early years, memorial services were usually held for the garrison alone, while townspeople paraded to local cemeteries every Memorial Day to honor the Civil War dead, often accompanied by the Fort Worden band. Today the cemetery serves as a place to recognize those who died in military service, with community volunteers decorating each grave with an American flag every Memorial Day, and it remains under the care of the federal government.

Port Townsend, Washington · United States