Chestnut Hill Cemetery, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
On August 8, 2026, an installation crew composed of PRVCHS volunteers will be conducting a headstone installation for:
Private George W. Smith,
Company H, 7th Pennsylvania Reserves
Private Smith enrolled with the Cumberland Guards on July 17, 1861 after leaving behind his wife and young children in his hometown of Mechanicsburg. A week later, he would be returning home as a deceased soldier who had been accidentally killed by the negligent discharge of a pistol. He was interred at what was then referred to as the Mechanicsburg Cemetery, but now known as Chestnut Hill Cemetery.
Since his interment, his headstone has weathered over 160 years to the point where it is entirely illegible. The MMGC has collaborated with the staff at the cemetery in order to have Smith’s headstone replaced, due to its deteriorated condition.
George Smith’s headstone as it appeared in 2025. It’s condition was so bad we could not tell which side of the stone was the front, versus the back.
Smith’s headstone, photograph taken in 2008.
Smith’s new headstone, which will be installed August 8,. 2026.
Headstone in route to Chestnut Hill Cemetery, in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.
Remnants of a glass jar found after excavating Smith’s original headstone. It had been buried purposely, most likely in remembrance of Smith’s loss.
L to R: Ken Gulick, Douglas Cubbison, Chris Rasmussen, Kyle Purchase & August Marchetti.
Visiting the final resting place of Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Totten, 7th Pennsylvania Reserves, also interred at Chestnut Hill Cemetery in Mechanicsburg.
The Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps Historical Society was organized in 2004 by August Marchetti and Justin Sanders.