In 1866 the federal government purchased of land within the grounds of Crown Hill for a national military cemetery. The bodies of more than 700 Union soldiers who died in Indianapolis during the Civil War were moved from Greenlawn Cemetery to new graves at the National Cemetery. On May 30, 1868, Crown Hill, along with Arlington National Cemetery and 182 others in twenty-seven states, took part in the country's first Memorial Day celebrations. An estimated crowd of 10,000 attended the Crown Hill ceremony, beginning an annual tradition at the site.