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The Monument marks the gravesite of the bones of victims of the Wyoming Massacre , which took place on July 3 , 1778 . Local residents banded together to defend the area against an invasion of British Tories as well as pro-Tory Native Americans. The battle ended in defeat for the colonial fighters and considerable brutuality followed the actual Battle.

Although the actual battle took place on July 3 , 1778 , it was not until October 22 , 1778 that a recovery party felt the region safe enough to return to begin to recover the bodies of those slain in the battle. The remains were gathered and interred in a common grave, only to be dug up again at public ceremonies in 1832 — ceremonies attended by some of the then elderly survivors of the Massacre. In 1833, the bones were reinterred in a vault under the present Monument.

Ownership of the Monument is held by the Wyoming Monument Association, originally formed as the Ladies Monumental Association. It is one of the oldest all-female historical groups in the United States.

Each year, beginning in 1878 for the 100th anniversary of the Battle, a commemorative ceremony is held on the grounds of the stone obelisk monument. The ceremony is sponsored by the Wyoming Commemorative Association .


REFERENCE

Oscar Jewel Harvey, ''History of Wilkes-Barre and Wyoming Valley"