Smithland Cemetery
Cemetery Location: The cemetery is located at the top of Level Street and Cemetery Road in Smithland, KY.
Where to Buy the Tour Booklet: Purchase the book at the Log Cabin, 117 State Street, Smithland, Monday through Friday from 1:00 – 4:00 PM. Tour books may also be purchased at the Smithland City Hall, 310 Wilson Avenue, Smithland, Kentucky, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM.
About the Tour: This Booklet takes you on a self-guided Walking/Driving tour of the Historic Smithland Cemetery. The booklet features a map of the cemetery and a short biography of the persons whose graves are featured on the tour. This circa 1810 cemetery provides visitors with a glimpse of the rich history of the early settlers of Livingston County.
Added Notes: The cemetery adjoins Fort Star, one of two forts that comprised the Fort Smith emplacements. The photo on the tour guide shows the view that the Union gunners would have had of the Ohio and Cumberland rivers, with the exception, of course, of 159 years of tree growth.
Fort Star has been added to the National Register of Historic Places, as well as to the National Civil War Discovery Trail, the Kentucky Civil War Heritage Trail, and the Illinois-Kentucky Ohio River Civil War Heritage Trail.
At least 12 U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery (USCHA) soldiers are buried in the Smitland cemetery. You will not find many cemeteries with this number of USCHA soldiers, because most have been reinterred in National Cemeteries. In fact, about 22 USCHA soldiers from Smithland were reinterred in the New Albany, Indiana National Cemetery. Few know that about 1000 USCHA soldiers were at the Smithland fort system and another 1000 in Paducah.