Captain Ted Conaway Memorial Naval Cemetery
Also known as Portsmouth Naval Hospital Confederate Cemetery , United States Navy Hospital Cemetery
Portsmouth, Portsmouth City, Virginia, USA
About
-
- Cemetery ID:
Members have Contributed
Advertisement
Photos
Now they rest in the cemetery at America's first naval hospital, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, VA. Occupying less than two acres on the hospital complex, this cemetery represents a unique chapter in the history of seafaring.
According to retired Navy CAPT Ted H. Conaway Jr., the hospital's historian and unofficial caretaker, the cemetery was established in observance of a British custom that a host whose guest died should provide a final resting place.
Among those resting in the cemetery are U.S. sailors who died in every conflict between the 1830s and World War II, including six winners of the Navy Medal of Honor. Victims of diseases, such as yellow fever and beriberi, fill many of the 881 graves.
The first man buried in the cemetery was George Butler, a young seaman who died in a fall from the rigging of the USS CONSTITUTION, known as "Old Ironsides," as it sailed home into Virginia's Norfolk harbor on Aug. 12, 1838.
Also buried in the cemetery are three Russian sailors that died from beriberi, a disease caused by a vitamin deficiency; three Spaniards taken prisoner during the Spanish-American War; and three German sailors who died after their ship sailed into the Chesapeake Bay to escape a British warship shortly before America entered World War I.
Although many of the cemetery's burial records are missing, many of the dead surely perished fighting pirates, which was one of the young U.S. Navy's main responsibilities, according to Conaway.
Now they rest in the cemetery at America's first naval hospital, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, VA. Occupying less than two acres on the hospital complex, this cemetery represents a unique chapter in the history of seafaring.
According to retired Navy CAPT Ted H. Conaway Jr., the hospital's historian and unofficial caretaker, the cemetery was established in observance of a British custom that a host whose guest died should provide a final resting place.
Among those resting in the cemetery are U.S. sailors who died in every conflict between the 1830s and World War II, including six winners of the Navy Medal of Honor. Victims of diseases, such as yellow fever and beriberi, fill many of the 881 graves.
The first man buried in the cemetery was George Butler, a young seaman who died in a fall from the rigging of the USS CONSTITUTION, known as "Old Ironsides," as it sailed home into Virginia's Norfolk harbor on Aug. 12, 1838.
Also buried in the cemetery are three Russian sailors that died from beriberi, a disease caused by a vitamin deficiency; three Spaniards taken prisoner during the Spanish-American War; and three German sailors who died after their ship sailed into the Chesapeake Bay to escape a British warship shortly before America entered World War I.
Although many of the cemetery's burial records are missing, many of the dead surely perished fighting pirates, which was one of the young U.S. Navy's main responsibilities, according to Conaway.
Nearby cemeteries
Portsmouth, Portsmouth City, Virginia, USA
- Total memorials3k+
- Percent photographed68%
- Percent with GPS1%
Portsmouth, Portsmouth City, Virginia, USA
- Total memorials15k+
- Percent photographed60%
- Percent with GPS2%
Portsmouth, Portsmouth City, Virginia, USA
- Total memorials30
- Percent photographed97%
- Percent with GPS0%
Portsmouth, Portsmouth City, Virginia, USA
- Total memorials12
- Percent photographed25%
- Percent with GPS0%
- Added: 25 Sep 2003
- Find a Grave Cemetery ID: 1970654
Cemetery Photos
This is a carousel with slides. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel.
Success
Uploading...
Waiting...
Failed
This photo was not uploaded because this cemetery already has 20 photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this cemetery
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this cemetery
Invalid File Type
Birth and death years unknown.
1 photo picked...
2 photos picked...
Uploading 1 Photo
Uploading 2 Photos
1 Photo Uploaded
2 Photos Uploaded
Size exceeded
Too many photos have been uploaded
"Unsupported file type"
• ##count## of 0 memorials with GPS displayed. Double click on map to view more.No cemeteries found