In the 1750's, both the French and British laid claim to the Ohio River Valley. In April 1755, Maj. Gen. Edward Braddock was selected to head a British expedition from Virginia to meet the French at Fort Duquesne near what is now Pittsburgh. One of his aides-de-camp was named George Washington.

The march was long and hard and so as they neared their destination, Braddock took a contingent of about 1200 men including Washington ahead, and left the rest of the army to catch up later.

This lead column was only about 8 miles from Fort Duquesne when they met up with a large reconnaissance contingent of French and Indians. The British formed themselves into ordered ranks but the French forces with Native American allies surrounded and fired on the British from the forest. At the end of the battle, three-quarters of the British lead column were dead or wounded.

Gen. Braddock himself was mortally wounded and died three days later during the British retreat. George Washington, having witnessed the slaughter which included scalping, was concerned that Braddock's remains not be desecrated. So he had Braddock buried in the middle of the road, and then ordered wagons to pass over the grave to hide it from further disturbance. George Washington proceeded over his funeral.

Many years later, in 1804, while repairs were being made to the Braddock Road, remains believed to be Braddock's were found by workmen. These were re-interred on a nearby hill and a granite monument was erected to mark the new grave.

Both the original and new graves are found along US Route 40 in southwestern Pennsylvania in one of the three sites that comprise Fort Necessity National Battlefield. The Braddock monument is visible from Route 40 and the original gravesite is marked and found in the same little park site further down the trace of the Braddock Road.

Braddock's Grave - The Untold Story

After the French and Indian War ended, the Braddock Road remained a main road in this area. In 1804, some workmen discovered human remains in the road near where Braddock was supposed to have been buried. Officer's uniform buttons reportedly found at the site indicated that the remains were those of General Braddock.

Initially, some of the remains were kept as souvenirs. Andrew Stewart, a local magistrate, learned of the desecration of the grave site and ordered the return of the remains. Reportedly, some hand bones found their way to the Peale Museum in Philadelphia. P.T. Barnum purchased the contents of the museum and moved it to New York City. A fire in 1864 destroyed the museum. In addition, a section of vertebrae is reportedly in the Walter Reed Hospital collection in Bethesda, Maryland.

The remains that were recovered were then re-interred on a small knoll adjacent to the road. In 1913 the marker was placed where it is today, keeping its silent watch.