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VA Reburies War of 1812 General at
Congressional Cemetery
July 18, 2008
WASHINGTON – Descendants of a War of 1812 general officer who died in 1841
witnessed his re-interment during a ceremony July 17 at a historic
gravesite administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
 The
remains of Maj. Gen. Alexander Macomb and his wife, Catherine, were placed
in their underground burial vault, which partially collapsed and was
recently repaired in Congressional Cemetery here.
The ceremony began at the cemetery’s chapel, where a box holding the
remains was displayed in front, as in a traditional funeral. Along with
family descendants in attendance were representatives of the Smithsonian
Institution, the Army and the National Park Service.
“This event is a dramatic collaboration among preservation organizations
within agencies of the federal and District government, and with the
private Congressional Cemetery, to ensure the proper rehabilitation of
historic properties,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B.
Peake. “I’m proud that VA’s Construction Office and History Program
stepped up to the challenge.”
Macomb was born in Detroit in 1782 and distinguished himself during the
War of 1812. His success holding off a larger British force at the Battle
of Plattsburgh, N.Y., earned him the rank of major general and a
Congressional Gold Medal. Later, he attained the rank of commanding
general. At his death in 1841, Macomb was buried with the highest military
honors in a ceremony attended by President John Tyler, members of Congress
and other dignitaries.
Archaeologists from the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History excavated
the site last month and temporarily housed the remains. In the excavation,
Smithsonian archaeologists found most of Macomb’s wooden coffin exterior
had deteriorated, but a metal coffin liner still held his skeletal
remains. Found on the coffin was a silver name plate with the text:
“Alexander Macomb, Major General Commanding in Chief the Army of the
United States, Born Detroit Michigan, Died at Washington, 25th June 1841.”
In 1973, VA’s cemetery system inherited from the Army the stewardship of
more than 800 grave sites in the non-profit cemetery, most of them
containing the remains of veterans. Included among the sites are 168
above-ground stone cenotaphs that memorialize members of Congress who were
buried in the mid-1800s, plus two monuments, one of them on Macomb’s
grave.
The cenotaphs and monuments were restored by National Park Service stone
masons and conservators in an ongoing project begun in 2006 at a cost to
VA of $1.75 million. Repair of the Macomb vault and monument – a
13-foot-high marble obelisk crowned with a helmet -- was estimated to cost
$24,000.
Organizations involved in the Macomb tomb restoration included: the Park
Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center, the Museum of Natural
History’s Department of Anthropology, the District of Columbia Historic
Preservation Office, VA’s National Cemetery Administration and the
Association for the Preservation of Historic Congressional Cemetery.
-------------------------
posted by Larry
Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
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