Antietam Circle #2 - Oakwood Cemetery In 1886, a portion of Oakwood Cemetery in Parsons, Kansas was purchased by Civil War veterans who came to Parsons as settlers after the war. They named it the Antietam Circle because they were the Antietam Post of the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.). The post was named for the Battle of Antietam, which was fought on September 17, 1862. The South won the battle, but the G.A.R. members in Parsons chose to name their post Antietam in memory of their lost friends. There are two adjacent Antietam Circles. Both contain Civil War graves. Circle #2 also has an American flag, cast iron gate, and four copper statues. Circle #1 has two 8 inch Columbiad cannons and a 28 foot tall concrete rotunda which was constructed in 1905. 375 American Civil War veterans are buried in this special section. The Grand Army of the Republic, Antietam Post No. 64 was organized on June 2, 1882 by Civil War Veterans living in and around Parsons and over 500 names were on the rolls. The cast iron gateway to Oakwood Cemetery was a donation of the Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) in 1911.
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