War of 1812 Veterans Buried in Alexandria

When British warships sailed up the Potomac in August 1814, Alexandria's men were already at the front. The city surrendered, endured occupation and plunder — and days later, at least two of its sons fell at the Battle of the White House, the engagement that so enraged Admiral Cochrane he accelerated his attack on Baltimore, leading directly to the bombardment of Fort McHenry and the words that became the National Anthem. Every link in that chain is buried in Alexandria, within walking distance of one another.

This volume documents all 53 known War of 1812 veterans buried across eight of Alexandria's historic cemeteries — shopkeepers, sea captains, physicians, merchants, and militia soldiers who answered the call a generation after independence was won.

Inside you'll find:

• Featured profiles of nine remarkable lives, including William Gregory, the last survivor of the Battle of the White House; Robert Allison Jr., killed in action at 27, his gravestone still bearing "batle" spelled with a single t; Commodore John Thomas Newton of the USS Hornet, awarded a Congressional Silver Medal; General John Mason, the man who sent Francis Scott Key to Fort McHenry; Anthony Charles Cazenove, the civilian hero vindicated of treason 210 years later by newly discovered family papers; and Jonathan Swift, the merchant diplomat who negotiated with the British — and whose grave has no known address today
• The complete registry of all 53 documented individuals, with burial locations, service records, and biographical notes — including correction entries for veterans erroneously commemorated on Revolutionary War markers
• A note on sources drawn from Alexandria's Special Collections, SAR and DAR records, and the unpublished research of historian Donald C. Dahmann

It is the most comprehensive accounting of War of 1812 burials in Alexandria ever assembled — a companion to Revolutionary War Patriots Buried in Alexandria, documenting the generation that followed, several of them sons of the patriots in that volume.

Digital PDF edition • Second Edition • 20 pages • By David Heiby • Published by Gravestone Stories, 2026