[9] Opening ceremonies were held on November 7, 1854,[9] and in his dedication address Reverend John H. C. Dosh asked, "Could a more lovely spot have been chosen?

"[10] The Evergreen Cemetery gatehouse was designed by Philadelphia architect Stephen Decatur Button, built by local contractors George and Henry Chritzman, and completed in November 1855.

[13] Major-General Oliver Otis Howard lined the cemetery's high ground with cannons, turning it into an "artillery platform,"[14] and made its gatehouse into XI Corps (Union Army) headquarters.

[15] At dusk on July 2, 5 Louisiana regiments under Brigadier-General Harry T. Hays and 3 North Carolina regiments under Colonel Isaac E. Avery commenced the Battle of East Cemetery Hill, charging Howard's artillery batteries from the east.

"Federal soldiers in the Cemetery laid many of the tombstones on the ground" to limit damage,[16] and some of the XI Corps batteries and infantry used the grave monuments "for shelter from the enemy's fire".