Mt. Sharon Cemetery, Middleburg VA

Whilst researching the Civil War in local areas I'd discovered online that there is a cemetery in Middleburg which is home to some Civil War soldiers. I left home a little earlier than usual on my way to work on Thursday to investigate. It's amazing how much you can find off the beaten track. The cemetery was only a few yards back from Rte 50 on which I travel back and forth every work day.

 

Not a nice thing to see on a gravestone...

Loved the way the rising sun fell on this stone.

Some wonderful examples of the carving skills on the older stones. They don't make them like they used to...

Poor Little Sue...

Lichen creeping over a railing of a family plot.

This dragon guarded another family plot but I could see no reason why a dragon was chosen. I did notice that a couple of the men had been Vietnam veterans and wondered if that was the link.
Then I came across the Civil War graves, the reason I'd sought out this quiet place. I've never seen Civil War graves arranged like this before and I slowly circled around reading them all. The monolith in the middle is in honor of those who are unnamed.

It was interesting to see how some stones had as much information as possible carved into them whereas others very sadly didn't even have a first name, only an initial.

 It was such a quiet morning with cows lowing distantly and birds chirruping in the branches, and I wondered how terrifying the same area must have been when these markers were actually the men they represented, holding rifles and bayonets in an air thick with gunpowder smoke and war cries. Thank God these soldiers have a tranquil, peaceful resting place now.  I felt annoyed that I couldn't stay longer, that my routine had to be adhered to and work was awaiting my arrival. I would've loved to have spent the morning just sitting there while reading a book but it was not to be. I left Lt. John Tiffany and his comrades to continue resting while I walked back to my car and started hurrying about my day.