The cemetery was founded in 1834 by the decree of the tsar in the Wola district of Warsaw. Its official opening took place in 1841, although the first burials here were of Russian soldiers who died during the capture of the Wolski redoubt while suppressing the Polish uprising of 1830-1831.

The cemetery is located on the site of the former redoubt No. 56, which played an important role in the defensive fortifications of the insurgents during the assault carried out by the troops of Ivan Paskevich-Erivan. In this battle, Polish General Józef Sowiński, who became a legendary hero of the uprising, was killed. The Church of St. Lawrence, the probable site of his death, was transformed by the order of the tsarist authorities into the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God of Vladimir, on the day of veneration of which Warsaw was taken.

The area of the cemetery is 13.3 hectares. Due to the loss of documents, it is impossible to determine the exact number of people buried here, but today there are 101 graves.

Initially, the cemetery was divided into four parts, and the burial place depended on the social status of the deceased. However, by 1850, there was a need to expand the cemetery's territory.

The cemetery served as a necropolis for the Orthodox residents of Warsaw during the Kingdom of Poland (1815-1915). In the 20th century, burials of Catholics began to appear here.

From the very beginning, the cemetery buried not only Russians. Special attention is deserved by the section for Ukrainian soldiers who participated in the Polish-Soviet War (1919-1921) on the side of the Poles against Soviet Russia for the independence of Ukraine. At the Wolski Cemetery, one can also find the graves of other Ukrainian and Russian soldiers who collaborated with the Germans during World War II.