Civil War Monuments: Kensington in Berlin, CT

Soldiers Monument

Kensington in Berlin, CT

GPS: N41° 37.371; W072° 46.976

Short Description: 

The Soldiers Monument, located at 312 Percival Avenue in the Kensington section of Berlin, CT, is the first Civil War monument to be erected in the United States.

Long Description:

The Kensington Soldiers Monument is a 20' obelisk fabricated from brownstone from the Portland, CT quarries. The monument was designed by Nelson Augustus Moore, funded by popular subscription, and dedicated on July 28, 1863. It is owned by the Kensington Congregational Church and is the first Civil War monument to be erected in the United States.

The monument was conceived by Reverend Charles B. Hilliard, minister of the adjacent Kensington Congregational Church in 1863. The obelisk is inscribed with the dedication on the front (northeast) face and the names and place and date of death of soldiers on the other three sides. A bronze medal of honor plaque rests at the foot of the monument. A 31' high ornate cast iron fence surrounds the obelisk. A Civil War cannon flanked by pyramids of cemented cannon balls was placed outside the monument in 1913.

On the front face of base, raised capital letters is the inscription:

SOLDIERS

On the face of the shaft is the dedication:

ERECTED TO COMMEMORATE THE DEATH

OF THOSE WHO PERISHED IN SUPPRESSING

THE SOUTHERN REBELLION.

"HOW SLEEP THE BRAVE WHO SINK TO REST

BY ALL THEIR COUNTRY'S WISHES BLEST."

1863.

and higher up the shaft is the raised seal of the State of Connecticut.

On the southeast face, the shaft is inscribed:

GEORGE W. HORTON

N.O. LA. OCT. 6, 1862.

HENRY F. ALLEN

POCOTALIGO, OCT. 22, 1862.

BIRDSEY J. BECKLEY

FREDERICKSBURG, DEC. 13, 1862

and the base is inscribed:

CAPT. FRANK A. COLE

WASHINGTON D.C. OCT. 4, 1864.

AGED 22.

On the southwest face, the shaft is inscribed:

DANFORD J. DAVIS

MORTON'S FORD, JAN. 1, 1864

CHARLES H. STANLEY

COLD HARBOR, JUNE 1, 1864

JAMES W. BELDEN

CHARLESTON S.C. OCT. 1, 1864

ROSWELL ROOT

NEW HAVEN, MAY 5, 1865

WM. W. WARNER

CHARLESTON S.C. NOV. 5, 1864

and the base is inscribed:

JOHN E. WARNER

ANNAPOLIS MD. DEC. 23, 1864

RICHARD RINGWOOD

ANDERSONVILLE GA.

NELSON M. RITCHIE

CO. G. 16. C. V.

On the northwest face, the shaft is inscribed:

JAMES L. BAILEY

CEDAR MOUNTAIN, AUG. 3, 1862

LEVERETT H. GLADDING

N.O. LA. AUG. 12, 1862

JOHN L. KENT

ANTIETAM, SEPT. 17, 1862

and the base is inscribed:

JAMES RINGWOOD

The medal of honor plaque at the base is for Elijah W. Bacon who was killed in the Battle of the Wilderness and buried in Maple Cemetery in Berlin, CT. The plaque is inscribed:

ELIJAH W. BACON

MEDAL OF HONOR

CORP. COF. 14 CONN INF

CIVIL WAR

MAY 6, 1864

A bronze plaque attached to the cast iron fence is inscribed:

In 1861 as the Civil War escalated, a decision was made to provide

a monument to honor soldiers from the Kensington area. The

effort was led by The Reverend Elias Hillard, Nelson A. Moore,

Selectman George Cowles and church members. It was designed

by Mr. Moore and dedicated on July 28, 1863. This monument

was the first in the Nation to honor Civil War soldiers. There were

15 local area men who served including Elijah H. Bacon who was

awarded the Medal of Honor.

This plaque was donated by the Town of Berlin under the auspices of

the Berlin Veterans Commission

A nearby bronze plaque is inscribed:

THIS PLAQUE PRESENTED TO

THE TOWN OF BERLIN

IN COMMEMORATION OF THE

100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE

CIVIL WAR

1861-1865

BY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY OF BERLIN

MAY 30, 1961