Fort McPherson National Cemetery (Maxwell NE)

For years we have traveled the I-80 corridor westbound and always commented "we need to stop off there...", and we usually drove on by. The "there" was usually some attraction posted by local, state or federal governments. The most recent road trip took us to Imperial for an 8th grade football game (Go Warriors), and an overnight in Ogallala. Returning home the "we need to..." became a destination. Fort McPherson National Cemetery near Maxwell Nebraska was an enlightening stop.

Fort McPherson was established in 1863 to ensure peace between the immigrants traveling along the Oregon Trail and Native Americans. The 20 acre Fort McPherson National Cemetery (established in 1873) afforded the space to reinter remains from cemeteries abandoned by the Army when conflict between settlers and Native Americans decreased.

An automated gravesite locator kiosk is located in the public information building. Out of curiosity we keyed in family names: Bach, Sengstake, Nootz (Nutz), and we had success with Cameron. William Cameron died on August 19, 1854 and was buried in Section B; #625.


Marker read: "In Memory of Enlisted Men Company G 6th Infantry Killed in Action near Fort Laramie Wyoming (Grattan Massacre) 8-19-1854"

Excerpt from cemetery brochure reads: "A large marble monument in Section B marks the group burial of the 18 enlisted soldiers killed by the Sioux on August 19, 1854 in what became known as the Grattan Massacre after Lt. John Grattan, who commanded the soldiers during the fight. Originally buried at the battle site near Fort Laramie, Wyoming, the soldiers were reinterred at Fort McPherson in 1891 and Lt. Grattan was reinterred at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Historians consider the fight to be the opening salvo in a 36 year period of intermittent hostilities between the Sioux Nation and the U.S. Army, ending with the massacre at Wounded Knee, South Dakota in 1890."

We are currently researching the name "William Cameron" to determine if he is an ancestor, and did find Grattan Massacre on Wikipedia which provided alot of background information leading up to the massacre.

The side trip was worth the stop ~ the cemetery is beautiful, serene, and well-maintained ~