A burial ground laid out in 1866-8 to commemorate the American prisoners of war who died at Dartmoor Prison during the Anglo-American War of 1812-1815.
LOCATION, AREA, BOUNDARIES, LANDFORM, SETTING The American Prisoner of War Cemetery, a rectangular shaped site of c 0.3ha, is located immediately north of Dartmoor Prison outside the prison wall. It is enclosed by a local granite stone retaining wall, c1m in height. The burial ground is surrounded by farmland with the rugged moorland stretching out beyond it to its north and east. Immediately to its west lies the French Prisoner of War Cemetery also laid out in 1866-8 to a similar design. ENTRANCES AND APPROACHES The burial ground is approached from either the east or the west via a track that runs along the outside of the prison wall. It can be entered from the south either via small steps built into the cemetery wall, or via an opening further along, to its right. The latter has since 2002 decorative cast-iron spear-headed gates presented by Dartmoor Prison giving access to a gravel path that leads to a commemorative obelisk to the centre of the burial ground. The burial ground can also be entered from the east via a stone granite memorial gate presented in 1928 by the United States Daughters of 1812. The memorial gate, constructed in large dressed stone granite blocks, is a copy of the main outer gate to Dartmoor Prison dating from c1808.
GARDENS The uneven ground of the cemetery is laid to lawn with a perimeter walk. The lawn rises to a bank built up against the dry stone wall enclosing the burial ground. The earth banks are planted with a row of Oak trees. The focal point of the burial ground is a granite obelisk standing at its centre. It commemorates the American Prisoners of War who died at Dartmoor prison between 1812 and 1815. It is set on a circular stepped base, introduced in c2002. Made by convicts of Dartmoor prison in c1866-8 (by then a civilian prison), the obelisk formerly stood on a granite stone rubble base forming a rockery planted with ferns, as shown on a photograph of c1900.
The obelisk is flanked to the north by two black marble memorial slabs inscribed with the names of the 271 American soldiers who died at Dartmoor prison between 1812-15. These were introduced more recently, in 2010, after a campaign led by the US Daughters of 1812 which resulted in the naming of 271 prisoners of war who lost their lives. Circa 2 or 3m north-east of the obelisk stands a flag pole, also introduced at that time.