Fort Smith National Cemetery, Fort Smith, Sebastian County, Arkansas, USA

Notes:
On Christmas Day 1817, General William Bradford and his men arrived on the point of land just below the confluence of the Poteau and Arkansas rivers, where they began constructing a stockade fort sufficient for one company. Within a few years of its establishment, additional troops were garrisoned to maintain peace and prevent hostilities between the Cherokee and the Osage. However, 50 men (about 25 percent of the command) died in 1823, with forty-four of the deaths occurring during the summer months. Despite its strategic importance the Army closed the fort in 1824. Doors, windows, and all other movable equipment at Fort Smith were transported to Fort Gibson for use in the construction of that post.

The first cemetery at Fort Smith was most likely established during this period. A newspaper article published in 1841 suggests there was a dilapidated burial ground outside of the stockade containing three graves marked by marble slabs. This cemetery may have been established in 1819 at the time of, or just prior to, the death of the Fort Smith surgeon Thomas Russell.

In 1838 the Army permanently returned to Fort Smith with the arrival of Company F, 7th U.S. Infantry. A new garrison was constructed, including an officers' log house where General Zachary Taylor lived from 1841 until 1845. In addition, the original post cemetery was rehabilitated and enlarged. On April 23, 1861, at the onset of the Civil War, Fort Smith was evacuated and Confederate forces occupied the garrison. By May of that year, the Arkansas legislature had ceded the fort to the Confederate States of America. During the War Between the States more than 400 Confederate soldiers were buried at Fort Smith, including Generals James B. McIntosh and Alexander E. Steen.

On Sept. 1, 1863, Union troops were able to retake Fort Smith and it remained in Union hands for the rest of the war.