Camp Nelson

Camp Nelson became a refuge for Tennessee white refugees and Kentucky African-American refugees who sought freedom and protection within this U.S. Army post, but many civilians died there from disease and were buried as numerous unknown dead. In 1863, many wives and children of East Tennessee Union enlistees came into Camp Nelson to escape Confederate occupation. In 1864-65, thousands of African-American women and children, most of them families of U.S. Colored Troops, entered Camp Nelson seeking freedom from slavery. The bodies of 217 Union soldiers, both black and white, were originally buried in this cemetery around the civilian graves, then moved to Camp Nelson National Cemetery after its creation in 1866.

Kentucky · United States