By 1869, more than 6,180 soldiers had been buried at Poplar Grove National Cemetery, on a former Union engineers' camp in Dinwiddie County. Only about a third of their names are known.
This Saturday, Nov. 14, every one of those graves gets a light. Petersburg National Battlefield's annual Luminary Program runs from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Visitors walk among more than 6,000 luminaries set in front of the markers, and rangers share stories of the people buried there.
Five weeks later, on Dec. 19, the same cemetery hosts Wreaths Across America. That morning is very different. In recent years, volunteers placed wreaths on roughly 800 to 900 graves, in a cemetery where the Wreaths Across America coverage goal is 5,700. The November light reaches everyone. The December wreaths reach about one grave in seven. That number depends on Dinwiddie neighbors, and it can still grow this year.
Why the rows look the way they do
Walking the grounds Saturday night makes more sense once you know how the cemetery was built. The War Department established Poplar Grove on May 7, 1866, on land where the 50th New York Engineers had camped during the 1864 siege. Over the next three years, a burial corps of 96 men recovered remains from the battlefields around Petersburg and from places as far as 150 miles away. Soldiers were buried in the order their remains arrived. That is why US Colored Troops, Native Americans, immigrants and a few Confederate soldiers rest throughout the cemetery, and why men from the same unit may not lie side by side.
The markers themselves have a history too. In 1933, the cemetery was transferred to the National Park Service, and the headstones were cut down and laid flat. Park ranger Betsy Dinger explained the decision to The Progress-Index in 2016:
"Back in 1933, the superintendent of the Park Service decided it would be much easier maintenance to cut off the headstones, lay them down flat, thinking that it would make both mowing the grass and keeping the tombstones maintained easier. It didn't quite work out that way."
She told the paper that the flat stones eroded much faster than upright ones would have, and that a few winters shifted them around in the ground.
In November 2015, the cemetery closed for a $5.3 million rehabilitation, the first complete one at any of the 14 national cemeteries the Park Service manages. Nearly 5,700 markers were replaced, CNN reported. Known graves got new upright stones. Graves of the unknown got square markers set above ground, matching the cemetery's original layout. The cemetery was rededicated in April 2017, according to CNN. That week, The Progress-Index announced the ceremony for Saturday, April 29.
On Saturday night, a lantern in front of an upright headstone marks a soldier whose name is known. A lantern in front of a small square marker belongs to someone whose name was lost. The luminaries treat both the same.
Saturday, Nov. 14: how the evening works
You can't drive to the cemetery for this event. Parking at Poplar Grove is closed for the program, so plan around the shuttle.
- Park at Richard Bland College, 11301 Johnson Road, Petersburg.
- Catch the free shuttle. It runs between the college and the cemetery from 5 to 8:30 p.m.
- Walk the rows from 5:30 to 8 p.m., when the luminaries are lit and rangers are telling stories of those buried there.
- Want to help set up? Volunteer shuttles leave Richard Bland College starting at 3:30 p.m. Volunteers can sign up by emailing [email protected].
The program falls on the Saturday closest to Veterans Day each year, so this weekend's date follows Wednesday's holiday. If you'd like to look for a particular soldier before you go, the Park Service keeps a searchable list of burials at Poplar Grove National Cemetery.
The December count, side by side
The cemetery's three yearly observances follow one pattern. Flags go in front of the markers on Memorial Day, luminaries on Veterans Day, and wreaths in December. The luminaries cover the whole cemetery. Here is how the wreath-laying has compared:
| Observance | People who took part | Graves reached |
|---|---|---|
| Luminary Program, Nov. 14, 2026 | Open to the public, plus volunteers | More than 6,000 luminaries |
| Wreaths Across America, Dec. 16, 2023 | More than 200 volunteers | More than 900 wreaths |
| Wreaths Across America, December 2025 | More than 250 people | Just over 800 wreaths |
| Wreaths Across America coverage goal | 5,700 veteran graves |
More than 250 people came out in 2025, more than in 2023, yet fewer wreaths were placed. Each wreath has to be sponsored before anyone can lay it. The December count depends on sponsorships made in the weeks before the ceremony.
The work doesn't end on ceremony day either. In January 2026, just over 30 volunteers returned to Poplar Grove for "wreaths out," collecting the 2025 wreaths and taking them apart.
Where the wreaths come from
The local sponsoring group for Poplar Grove is Dinwiddie American Legion Post 149, listed on Wreaths Across America as group VA0974P. A wreath sponsorship costs $17. Sponsors can choose the location where their wreath will be placed, and the wreaths go on veterans' graves.
In early November, the Poplar Grove location page showed about 435 wreaths sponsored toward the 5,700 goal. Post 149's own group page showed 14 of its 100-wreath goal. Those counters change daily. The page is the place to see where things stand.
In 2023, The Progress-Index reported that organizers expected 700 wreaths. Park Service counts afterward put the total above 900. So the count has risen in the final weeks before a ceremony.
Saturday, Dec. 19: the second trip to Vaughan Road
The Wreaths Across America page lists the 2026 ceremony for Dec. 19 at noon, with wreath placement immediately afterward. The cemetery's address is 8005 Vaughan Road, Petersburg. Parking follows the same plan as the luminary night. Spaces at the cemetery are reserved for handicapped parking and volunteers with mobility restrictions. Everyone else parks at Richard Bland College, 11301 Johnson Road. A free shuttle starts at 10:45 a.m. and runs every 15 minutes. Parking questions go to [email protected].
In past years, anyone who came could place wreaths on headstones once the formal presentation ended. The Park Service also lists Wreaths Across America Day on the Petersburg National Battlefield calendar. The same calendar shows a "Ranger's Choice" program at 10:30 a.m. every day through November and December.
On Nov. 14, you can walk among lanterns at more than 6,000 graves. On Dec. 19, the wreaths will cover only as many graves as have been sponsored.
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