Assignment: Remember the Fallen, July 2009Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery, Leavenworth, KS
On July 4TH, 2009, I spent the afternoon honoring those who have served our country and are now resting in Ft. Leavenworth National Cemetery.
The cemetery is located in Leavenworth, KS in the North Eastern part of the state, close to the border between Kansas and Missouri. Fort Leavenworth, the oldest active Army post west of the Mississippi River, has served the needs of our nation since 1827.
Fort Leavenworth played a key roll in the country's westward expansion and served as a forward destination for tens of thousands of Soldiers, surveyors, emigrants, Native Americans, preachers and settlers who passed through.
Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery is one of the first 12 national cemeteries established by Abraham Lincoln on July 17, 1862. Veterans since the War of 1812 have been laid to rest in the cemetery. One
veteran of the War of 1812 is the cemetery's most famous occupant, Col. Henry Leavenworth, who gave his name to the fort, the town, the county and the cemetery.Others buried in the cemetery include 8 Medal of Honor recipients, seven Confederate prisoners of war, two Soldiers killed in Operation Desert Storm, and Soldiers killed in the War on Terror. Although there is no longer space for new burial sites, burials frequently take place for those who already have family members interred in the cemetery. As of 2008, there are 23,058 buried here.
Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery
395 Biddle Boulevard
Fort Leavenworth, KS 66027
Visitation Hours:
Open daily from dawn to dusk.
