Chester Rural Cemetery is a historic

rural cemetery A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-nineteenth century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries. They were typically built one to five ...

founded in March 1863 in

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester is ...

. Some of the first burials were

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

soldiers, both

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

and

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

, who died at the government hospital located at the nearby building which became the

Crozer Theological Seminary The Crozer Theological Seminary was a Baptist seminary located in Upland, Pennsylvania. Martin Luther King Jr. was a student at Crozer Theological Seminary from 1948 to 1951, and graduated with a Bachelor of Divinity degree. In 1970, the semin ...

. The cemetery is landscaped and had a large lake that was drained in the 1950s. It covers 36 acres and contains approximately 31,000 graves. Two monuments in the cemetery have been documented by the Smithsonian Institution Research Information System: the statue "Sorrow" by Samuel Murray atop the Alfred O. Deshong memorial, and the Civil War Memorial, by

Martin Milmore __NOTOC__ Martin Milmore (1844–1883) was an American sculptor. Life and career Martin Milmore was born in Sligo, Ireland on September 14, 1844. He immigrated to Boston at age seven, graduated from Boston Latin School in 1860, took art lesso ...

. On April 13, 1917, 55 unidentified victims of the

Eddystone explosion On April 10, 1917, four days after the United States declared war on Germany, an explosion at the Eddystone Ammunition Corporation's artillery shell plant in Eddystone, Pennsylvania, killed 139 people. The majority were women and girls who worke ...

at the Eddystone Ammunition Corporation were buried in a mass grave at the Chester Rural Cemetery. An estimated 12,000 people attended the funeral service. Sorrow Murray Deshong

Soldiers Circle

Veterans from the

and other conflicts are buried in this area of the cemetery. There are also memorials to commemorate each war since the Civil War. On September 17, 1873, the Soldier's Monument was dedicated to the memory of the soldiers and sailors of Delaware County who died in the Civil War. The dedication was attended by 8,000 people. The main speaker at the dedication was the U.S. Congressman

John Weiss Forney John Weiss Forney (30 September 1817 – 9 December 1881) was an American newspaper publisher and politician. He was clerk of the United States House of Representatives from 1851 through 1856, and again from 1860 through 1861. He was thereafter se ...

and many dignitaries attended, including Major General

Galusha Pennypacker Uriah Galusha Pennypacker (June 1, 1841/1844 – October 1, 1916) was a Union general during the American Civil War. He may be the youngest person to hold the rank of brigadier general in the US Army; at the age of 20, he remains the only general ...

. On the front of the Civil War Memorial is the following inscription: Chester Rural Cemetery was a part of the

United States National Cemetery System The United States National Cemetery System is a system of 164 cemeteries in the United States and its territories. The authority to create military burial places came during the American Civil War, in an act passed by the U.S. Congress ...

during the Civil War with a leased lot within the cemetery for soldiers that died in the nearby hospital. See p. 233. Many of the soldiers' graves, including Confederate soldiers, were moved to

Philadelphia National Cemetery Philadelphia National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the West Oak Lane neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was established in 1862 as nine leased lots in seven private cemeteries in the Philadelphia region. ...

in Philadelphia in 1892.A brief history of Chester Rural Cemetery Chester, PA
accessed October 31, 2011.

Notable burials

Edward Fitzgerald Beale Edward Fitzgerald "Ned" Beale (February 4, 1822 – April 22, 1893) was a national figure in the 19th-century United States. He was a naval officer, military general, explorer, frontiersman, Indian affairs superintendent, California rancher, ...

(1822–1893), Explorer of the West, a founder of California, hero of the US-Mexican War, US diplomat * Clarence D. Bell (1914–2002), Pennsylvania State Senator *

William H. Berry William Harvey Berry (September 9, 1852 – June 19, 1928) was an American politician who served as Mayor of Chester, Pennsylvania, for one year in 1905 and as the Pennsylvania Treasurer, Pennsylvania State Treasurer from 1906 to 1908. As Tr ...

(1852–1928),

Pennsylvania State Treasurer The Pennsylvania State Treasurer is the head of the Pennsylvania Treasury Department, an independent department of state government. The state treasurer is elected every four years. Treasurers are limited to two consecutive terms. The Pennsylva ...

and 10th Mayor of Chester * Dorothy Chacko (1904–1992), US physician and

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

awardee * Robert Chadwick (1834–1902), Pennsylvania State Representative * Joseph R. T. Coates (died 1921), Civil War Major, Mayor of Chester * Walter H. Craig (1880–1937), Pennsylvania State Representative for Delaware County from 1923 to 1925 *

Edward Darlington Edward Darlington (September 17, 1795 – November 21, 1884) was a three term member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from the Anti-Masonic Party. His cousins Isaac Darlington and William Darlington were also both member ...

(1795–1884), US congressman * Alfred O. Deshong (1837–1913), industrialist, philanthropist and art collector * John O. Deshong (1807–1881), businessman and banker * Peter Deshong (1781–1827), businessman and banker * Samuel Edwards (1785–1850), US congressman * David Reese Esrey (1825–1898), businessman and banker * John K. Hagerty (1867–1945), Pennsylvania State Representative * John B. Hinkson (1840–1901), lawyer, businessman and sixth mayor of Chester * Mignonette Kokin aka Margaret Galetti (1880–1957), vaudeville dancer, singer and actress * John Larkin, Jr. (1804–1896), businessman, banker and first mayor of Chester *

John J. McClure John J. McClure (September 24, 1886 – March 28, 1965) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 9th district from 1929 to 1937. He was a major force in the Republi ...

(1886–1965), Pennsylvania State Senator *

Edward Nothnagle Edward Nothnagle (November 20, 1866 – February 14, 1938) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for Delaware County, Pennsylva ...

(1866–1938), Pennsylvania State Representative for Delaware County (1926–1936) * William G. Price, Jr. (1869–1960), businessman and

Pennsylvania National Guard The Pennsylvania National Guard is one of the oldest and largest National Guards in the United States Department of Defense. It traces its roots to 1747 when Benjamin Franklin established the Associators in Philadelphia. With more than 18,000 per ...

Officer * James William Reese (1920–1943),

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

recipient *

William Cameron Sproul William Cameron Sproul (September 16, 1870 – March 21, 1928) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania State Senate from 1897 to 1919 and as the 27th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1919 ...

(1870–1928), Pennsylvania governor * John R. Sweney (1837–1899), gospel music composer *

David Trainer David Trainer is an American television director. He is perhaps best known for directing every episode of the Fox sitcom ''That '70s Show'' (except the pilot, which was directed by Terry Hughes) and directed all the episodes of the Netflix sit ...

(1814–1890), textile manufacturer and banker *

Henry Clay Vedder Henry Clay Vedder (February 26, 1853 – October 13, 1935) was an American Baptist church historian, seminary professor, editor and theologian. Vedder authored numerous articles and twenty-seven books on church history and theology. Early life a ...

(1853–1935), Baptist church historian * Young Singleton Walter (1811–1888), Pennsylvania State Representative for Delaware County from 1877 to 1880, owner of ''Delaware County Republican'' newspaper * William Ward (1837–1895), US congressman * William Ward Jr. (1865–1949), Pennsylvania representative and two-term mayor of Chester *

Jonathan Edwards Woodbridge Jonathan Edwards Woodbridge (January 16, 1844 – May 21, 1935) was an American shipbuilder and naval architect from Richmond, Virginia. He served in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War and was one of the Virginia Military Institut ...

(1844–1935), American shipbuilder * William P. Worrall (1827–1887), Pennsylvania State Representative for Delaware County from 1875 to 1876

References

External links

Chester Rural Cemetery website

Soldiers Circle

Notable burials

References

External links

Further reading