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Baltimore National Cemetery
Inventory No.:
B-5146, BA-3239
Date Listed:
3/8/2016
Location:
5501 Frederick Avenue (MD 144), Catonsville, Baltimore City, Baltimore County
Category:
District
Period/Date of Construction:
1936-Present
Architect/Builder:
War Department; Works Progress Administration
Related Multiple Property Record:
Inter-World War National Cemeteries, 1934-1939
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Description:
Baltimore National Cemetery is just over 72 acres located at 5501 Frederick Avenue in the southwestern corner of the City of Baltimore. The cemetery straddles the boundary between Baltimore City and Baltimore County. About 28 acres of the cemetery are in the Beechfield neighborhood of Baltimore City, and just over 44 acres are in Catonsville, Baltimore County. The cemetery’s undeveloped acreage covers 5 acres. Congress established Baltimore National Cemetery in 1936. As of August 2014, there were 45,996 remains within the cemetery; of this number, 35,514 are casketed interments and 1,651 are cremains. Baltimore National Cemetery closed to interments in 1970 except for burials in reserved gravesites or second interments in existing graves. However, fifty spaces for in-ground cremains are currently available. There is one memorial group, consisting of six individual monuments and an interpretive plaque. The landscape of Baltimore National Cemetery, with its rolling hills and undulating topography, inspired complementary, organic roadways meandering along the irregularly shaped parcel of land. As a result, the War Department designed Baltimore National Cemetery naturalistically, with winding roads and irregularly shaped interment sections conforming to the organic topography of the property. As such, Baltimore National Cemetery reflects the lawn park cemetery style of the nineteenth century. At one point, the War Department planned to name the cemetery roads after Maryland veterans. Instead, the roads are named Portal Drive, Rostrum Drive West, Rostrum Drive East, Outer Drive, First Cross Drive, and Second Cross Drive. Since 1960, the only change in roads is an extension to the road between Sections P and C. There are seventeen burial sections: A-N, P, R, and Memorial Section MA, containing memorial headstones that serve to honor soldiers who are buried elsewhere or whose remains cannot be located. The original cemetery layout is intact and retains a high degree of integrity. Baltimore National Cemetery’s headstones reflect the era of establishment. The style of headstone is a major distinguishing characteristic of national cemeteries established in the twentieth century. The upright headstone appearance changed dramatically between the Spanish-American War and World War I. The oldest style of government-issued headstone, for soldiers of the Civil War and Spanish-American War, are white marble with rounded tops with recessed shields on the face. The raised inscription includes the state of origin, unlike subsequent inscription practice, and rank if above private. The predominant headstone at Baltimore National Cemetery is the upright white American marble cambered “General type” introduced in 1922 for World War I soldiers and those thereafter. The General-type headstone measures 42” high, 13” wide, and 4” thick; approximately 26” is visible above ground. Inscriptions include the name, rank, regiment, division, date of birth, date of death, and home state. Originally, the emblem of belief centered above the name of the deceased. The number of available emblem of belief options began to increase after World War II. In addition, some cemeteries permit flat, government-issued markers in specific sections. In the 1930s, the War Department introduced flat headstones to accommodate veterans buried in private/local cemeteries that did not allow upright markers, such as the lawn park and memorial park cemeteries. Congress already authorized markers of “durable stone” in 1873, thus, the Secretary of War only needed to approve a new style--flat. The first flat marble markers were produced in 1936, with flat granite markers following two years later. They measure 24” by 12” with rounded edges. The same products are used interchangeably as memorial markers. There are three flat white marble headstones in Baltimore National Cemetery located in Sections A, H, and I. There are twenty-two memorial headstones at Baltimore National Cemetery, including sixteen in Memorial Section MA.
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Significance:
Baltimore National Cemetery’s significance rests in its position as one of seven national cemeteries established between World War I and World War II, specifically in 1934-1939. The increased veteran population, combined with rapidly depleting burial space at existing national cemeteries, led to a series of federal legislation during this period aimed at establishing new cemeteries. These acts resulted in the creation of Baltimore, Fort Snelling, Fort Rosecrans, Golden Gate, Fort Bliss, Long Island, and Fort Sam Houston national cemeteries. These seven properties are nationally significant for their association with the expansion of the National Cemetery System during the Inter-World War period. These cemeteries are physical shrines illustrating selfless sacrifices of the U.S. military, which expand upon the burial and memorial mission established during the Civil War through the first national cemeteries.
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