English: Standing on Custis Walk, looking uphill (west) at a concrete bench at Arlington National Cemtery.

Custis Walk is one of the few concrete paths in Arlington National Cemetery. Originally, the area traversed by Custis Walk was a densely wooded area. In July 1861, a new road was cut through Arlington Woods north of the mansion to provide an escape route for Union troops in case the Confederacy attacked the Arlington estate. This road went down into the ravine north and northeast of the house and up the other side before curving northwest to meet the Washington and Alexandria Turnpike. (Portions of Sherman Avenue and Ord & Weitzel Drive follow the route of this road today.)

Electric trolley service to Arlington National Cemetery began in the 1890s. At the time, the eastern boundary of the cemetery was where Eisenhower Drive and Schley Drive are now. The main entrance to the cemetery was Sheridan Gate, located about 100 feet north of the current Main Gate. One of the trolley stations was where the Main Gate is now.

In 1893, Arlington officials constructed Custis Walk. This 3,000-foot-long pathway largely paralleled the old Civil War road (now Sherman Avenue) to the south until it reached the old turnpike and the Sheridan Gate. Concrete benches (such as this one) were placed along the path to provide rest for pedestrians. The reason for building Custis Walk was to provide a path to Arlington House from the new trolley station.

There is a looping section of Custis Walk in front of the northeast corner of Arlington House. The lower section of the loop allows viewers to see the front of the Wright and Porter graves, but also to turn around and get "overhead" views of the two Kennedy graves. I was standing where the lower loop rejoins the main path.