Adontee Neddham Mr.Hohm 8th Grade Social Studies 04/24/17 The Arlington Cemetery If the graveyard is truly the richest place on the planet, then much can be gained from visiting the Arlington Cemetery. The Arlington Cemetery is an insightful place to visit: it is home to soldiers who fought for freedom, some of America’s greatest civil rights activists, and significant political leaders who will never be forgotten. Not only does the Arlington Cemetery hold over four hundred thousand of America 's greatest figures, (CNN) but it also holds over four hundred thousand accounts of history. However, while the graves themselves are of great importance, one must not overlook the significance of the graveyard itself. The Arlington Cemetery was …show more content…
Montgomery Meigs later made Arlington officially a national cemetery: "I recommend that...the land surrounding the Arlington Mansion, now understood to be the property of the United States, be appropriated as a National Military Cemetery, to be properly enclosed, laid out and carefully preserved for that purpose" (Smithsonian). After this Meigs worked hard to make Arlington uninhabitable for the Lee’s and a place for the dead and the senate agreed, stating that the Estate was becoming a place for “the sacred dead”, “the patriotic dead”, “the heroic dead”, and “the patriotic graves” …show more content…
It hosted the first Memorial day in 1868 (History), and is home to over four hundred thousand of the dead, 2000 of them being former slaves (Arlington). However, perhaps one of its memorable attractions is the Tomb of the Unknown, which holds almost 5,000 of the unidentified remains of soldiers (History). Arlington spans 624 acres (Arlington) and the graveyard and the graves themselves hold much significance to American history. Names such as John F. Kennedy, and William Howard Taft can be viewed on gravestones at the cemetery, but so can this nation 's history. One will look at the tombs and think how hard soldiers and political leaders fought to get us where America is today. The Arlington estate truly is an amazing place to put a cemetery, and a cemetery truly is an amazing place to gain the treasures of this country’s