Woodlawn Cemetery is a cemetery located at 405 E. Main Street in Carbondale, which is known for hosting one of the first

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

celebrations in the United States. The cemetery was established in 1854, two years before the incorporation of Carbondale. Over twenty

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, most of them Carbondale natives, were buried in the cemetery during the war. In April 1866, three Civil War veterans from Carbondale organized an event to honor the dead soldiers and decorate their gravesites; this event was one of the earliest observations of Memorial Day. The event included a speech by General

John A. Logan John Alexander Logan (February 9, 1826 – December 26, 1886) was an American soldier and politician. He served in the Mexican–American War and was a general in the Union Army in the American Civil War. He served the state of Illinois as a st ...

, who in 1868 called for the national observance of Memorial Day as commander-in-chief of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

. The cemetery was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

on December 19, 1985.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Geography of Jackson County, Illinois National Register of Historic Places in Jackson County, Illinois