HCWHA US 250th GeoTour
Mount Olivet Cemetery
Party like it’s 1776 with the Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area’s 250th GeoTour! Designed for beginner and veteran geocachers, participants will travel through time, solving puzzles and following clues to learn more about mid-Maryland’s rich history. In honor of the 250th anniversary of the United States, our 250th GeoTour will take you throughout Carroll, Frederick, and Washington Counties to sites of historical significance, including battlefields, houses of worship, museums, parks, and more!
Our tour is an opportunity to learn more about the people, places, and events that laid the foundation for our country. While supplies last, those who collect 15 or more will earn this Geotour’s limited edition geocoin commemorating the 250th. Happy hunting!
This Virtual will take you on a tour of Frederick, Maryland's most famous cemetery.
Mount Olivet Cemetery was chartered on October 4, 1852, with the first burial on May 28, 1854. Today, over 40,000 people lay buried at the cemetery. Built during the “rural” or “garden” cemetery movement, Mt. Olivet Cemetery serves as both a final resting place and an educational facility to teach visitors about the lives and legacies of those buried at Mt. Olivet.
Mount Olivet Cemetery is made up of hundreds of lots owned by individual families. Many notable people are buried at the cemetery, including Francis Scott Key (1779-1843), author of the National Anthem, Barbara Fritchie (1766-1862), heroine of John Greenleaf Whittier’s poem from the Civil War, and Thomas Johnson (1732-1819), the first governor of Maryland.
Additionally, Mount Olivet is home to Confederate Row and a mass grave, which holds nearly 700 Confederate dead, many of whom died in Civil War hospitals in the City of Frederick. After the Civil War, it was not financially feasible for many Southern families to bring their fallen loved ones home, so this remained the final resting place for many Confederate soldiers who died far from home.
Politicians, preachers, businessmen and women, lawyers, educators, soldiers, inventors, and common, everyday people are laid to rest at the cemetery. Representing the past “lifeblood” of the community, those buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery, for better or for worse, built the Frederick city and county we know today. Mt. Olivet seeks to explore the contributions of the leaders, farmers, parents, and children who built Frederick City and County’s physical and cultural landscape throughout Frederick’s 270 years of history.
“Historic Origins of Mount Olivet Cemetery.” Mount Olivet Cemetery. http://www.mountolivethistory.com/history-of-mount-olivet.html.
Mount Olivet Cemetery. https://www.mountolivetcemeteryinc.com/.
“Mount Olivet Cemetery.” Visit Frederick. https://www.visitfrederick.org/listing/mount-olivet-cemetery/132/.
To gain credit for this Virtual,
1) Take a picture of yourself or some type of object with your caching name on it at one of the following locations:
Francis Scott Key Memorial (Original coordinates)
Barbara Fritchie Memorial (Virtual Stage 1) or
The World War II Memorial (Virtual Stage 3)
2) Answer the following questions which can be found at one of the Virtual Stages:
A) (Francis Scott Key Memorial) - Below the plaque on the memorial which displays the four verses to the Star-Spangled Banner, there is a piece of sheet music. What is the word above the treble clef on the left?
B) (Barbara Fritchie Memorial) - On the interpretive wayside sign, there is a quote from someone that begins with the word "Over". Who is the quote from?
C) (Governor Thomas Johnson Tombstone) - The painting of Thomas Johnson and his family on the interpretive wayside sign was painted by whom?
D) (World War II Memorial) - The base of the Golden Flame Memorial is what shape?
Mount Olivet Cemetery front entrance is open from 8:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. from April 1 to October 1 and from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. from October 1 until April 1.
This Virtual Geocache will be part of the Heart of The Civil War Geotour which is planning to be released in September of 2025.
This Virtual Reward Cache was created in collaboration with HQ’s Business Development team.
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.