Thousands of America’s First Veterans Are Buried in Ohio, and Historians Need Your Help to Find Them

CLEVELAND, Ohio – An estimated 7,000 Revolutionary War veterans are believed to be buried in Ohio.

The Ohio History Connection is leading an effort to locate and document every one of them.

The historical society, in conjunction with the America 250- Ohio commission, is seeking the public’s help.

“We suspect that few Ohioans are aware of how many Revolutionary War veterans settled in the state after the war ended,” said Todd Kleismit, executive director of America 250- Ohio, the organization planning the state’s commemoration of the U.S. semiquincentennial in 2026. “Creating this database will help crystalize this connection and enhance our understanding of just how important Ohio was to the establishment of the United States.”

Historians, genealogists, local historical societies, students, scouting groups and descendants are all encouraged to contribute.

Led by the Ohio History Connection and its State Historic Preservation Office, with support from Terracon Consultants, the project uses a new online portal and the mobile app Survey123.

The use of Survey123 forms, created and monitored by Terracon, allows the crowdsourcing of cemetery data including photos, GPS location and other important information.

“The beauty of this approach is that it empowers anyone who owns a smartphone to contribute meaningful data to the project,” said Joseph Snider, archaeological geophysicist at Terracon.

Already, data for more than 850 Revolutionary War veterans’ gravesites has been entered into the portal, which launched in late May. Included in the count: More than a dozen veterans in Cuyahoga County and nearly 100 in Lake County.

But many more soldiers are believed to be buried in Ohio. The Sons of the American Revolution and Daughters of the American Revolution have previously gathered information to help identify some 6,800 veterans buried in Ohio.

Despite not being one of the original 13 colonies, Ohio was home to many Revolutionary War veterans after the war. Ohio didn’t become a state until 1803, although many veterans settled in what was then the Northwest Territory in the years following independence.

Many veterans were granted land in Ohio as payment for their military service.

Marietta, founded in 1788 along the Ohio River, was the first capital of the Northwest Territory. Marietta’s Mound Cemetery is the final resting place for dozens of Revolutionary War veterans.

“These are the very first veterans of the United States of America,” said Krista Horrocks, historian and cemetery preservationist with the Ohio History Connection. “This project is about reclaiming those stories and ensuring the stories of these Ohioans who directly contributed to the founding of our country are remembered for generations to come.”

Horrocks notes that many graves have been lost to time, deterioration or development — and stresses the urgency of documenting them now. “Gravestones won’t survive forever,” she said. “But if we can document their location and story today, that information will outlive all of us.”

A key goal is to establish a robust public record by July 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

To learn more and to access the submission portal: ohiohistory.org/revwargraves

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