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Some of the grave markers.

2,436 Rebels Buried Here

Field review by the editors.

Pennsville, New Jersey

In 1863, Pea Patch Island, a Union prison in the Delaware River, was packed with almost 13,000 Confederate prisoners (It had been designed to hold only 4,000). Disease and malnutrition killed nearly 2,700, and most of their bodies were then barged across the river and buried in trenches on an isolated patch of New Jersey. After the war the grave became a National Cemetery at the insistence of the governor of Virginia (a former Confederate general). In 1910 a towering, 85-foot-tall granite obelisk was erected to mark the mass grave, joining a smaller temple-like monument to the 135 Union guards who also died on the island. On the other side of the obelisk, marble tombstones mark the graves of 13 German POWs who died during World War II at New Jersey's Fort Dix.

Mass grave obelisk.

Finn's Point National Cemetery currently has over 3,000 graves, a total that increased by one in 1997, when the caretaker of the isolated cemetery was murdered by spree-killer Andrew Cunanan, his fourth victim in just over two weeks.

2,436 Rebels Buried Here

Finns Point National Cemetery

Address:
454 Fort Mott Rd, Pennsville, NJ
Directions:
Finns Point National Cemetery. The grave is marked by a towering obelisk in itty-bitty Finns Point National Cemetery. NJ Tpke exit 1 or I-295 exit 1 onto Hwy 49/Broadway. Drive southeast for 3.5 miles into Pennsville. Look for the sign on the right (Fort Mott/Finns Point National Cemetery) and turn right onto Fort Mott Rd. Drive south for three miles and turn right at the brown sign for Finns Point National Cemetery. Drive all the way to the back; you'll see the obelisk.
Hours:
Daily 8 AM-sunset (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
Phone:
215-504-5610
RA Rates:
Worth a Detour
Save to My Sights

Nearby Offbeat Places

Fort Delaware: Confederate HellholeFort Delaware: Confederate Hellhole, Delaware City, DE - 2 mi.
Most Historic Alley in DelawareMost Historic Alley in Delaware, New Castle, DE - 3 mi.
34-Foot-Tall Stainless Steel Mary34-Foot-Tall Stainless Steel Mary, New Castle, DE - 6 mi.
In the region:
Band of Brothers: Wild Bill on One Leg, Newtown Square, PA - 26 mi.

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