|
|
Anonymous Wrote:
Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia is a military
cemetery in the United States, established during the American Civil War
on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of
Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna (Custis) Lee, a descendant of Martha
Washington.
`
The cemetery is situated directly across the Potomac River from
Washington, D.C. and near The Pentagon. More than 290,000 people are
buried in an area of 624 acres.
`
Veterans and military casualties from every one of the nation's wars are
interred in the cemetery, from the American Revolution through the
military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq.
`
The first soldier to be buried in Arlington was Private William Henry
Christman on May 13, 1864.
`
Arlington National Cemetery and United States Soldiers' and Airmen's
Home National Cemetery are administered by the Department of the Army.
`
Arlington House (Custis-Lee Mansion) and its grounds are administered by
the National Park Service as a memorial to Lee.
`
When Civil War casualties overflowed hospitals and burial grounds near
Washington, D.C., Quartermaster General Montgomery C. Meigs proposed in
1864 that 200 acres of the Robert E. Lee family property at Arlington
be taken for a cemetery.
`
Custis Lee, heir to the property, sued the government claiming ownership
of the land. After the Supreme Court ruled in Lee's favor, Congress paid
him $150,000 for title to the land.
`
The decision was made to appropriate his farm as a graveyard for mostly
Union dead.
`
In Arlington National Cemetery, Memorial Day has been celebrated. On May
30, 1968, the first national ceremony for Memorial Day took place in
Arlington National Cemetery by the President Lyndon B. Johnson.
`
Hundreds of volunteers gathered at Arlington to place more than five
thousand donated Christmas wreaths on head stones in the cemetery. The
14th annual wreath laying event is a result of Worcester Wreath Company
owner Morrill Worcester's boyhood dream of doing something to honor
those laid to rest in the National Cemetery.
`
The Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery is also known as
the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It stands on top of a hill overlooking
Washington, D.C.
One of the more popular sites at the Cemetery, the tomb is made from
Yule marble quarried in Colorado. It consists of seven pieces, with a
total weight of 79 short tons . The tomb was completed and opened to the
public April 9, 1932, at a cost of $48,000. It was initially named the
"Tomb of the Unknown Soldier."
`
Other unknown servicemen were later entombed there, and it became known
as the "Tomb of the Unknowns", though it has never been officially
named. The soldiers entombed there are:
Unknown Soldier of World War I, interred November 11, 1921. President
Warren G. Harding presided.
Unknown Soldier of World War II, interred May 30, 1958. President Dwight
D. Eisenhower presided.
Unknown Soldier of the Korean War, also interred May 30, 1958. President
Dwight Eisenhower presided again, Vice President Richard Nixon acted as
next of kin.
Unknown Soldier of the Vietnam War, interred May 28, 1984. President
Ronald Reagan presided. The remains of the Vietnam Unknown were
disinterred, under the authority of President Bill Clinton, on May 14,
1998, and were identified as those of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael J.
Blassie, whose family had him reinterred near their home in St. Louis,
Missouri.
`
The Tomb of the Unknowns is perpetually guarded by the U.S. Army. The
3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment ("The Old Guard") began guarding the Tomb
April 6, 1948.
`
Exterior facade of the Arlington Memorial Amphitheater is modeled on
Roman amphitheatres.
`
It is built of Vermont Imperial Danby marble in the Ionic order. The
Memorial Amphitheater has hosted state funerals and Memorial Day and
Veterans Day ceremonies. Ceremonies are also held for Easter. About
5,000 people attend these holiday ceremonies each year.
`
Woodrow Wilson laid the cornerstone for the building on October 15,
1915. The cornerstone contained 15 items including a Bible and a copy of
the Constitution. `
Other frequently visited sites in the cemetery are the USMC War Memorial
(commonly known as the "Iwo Jima Memorial"), and the grave of President
John F. Kennedy. Kennedy is buried with his wife and two of their
children. He was placed here March 14, 1967. His grave is marked with an
eternal flame. His brother, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, is also buried
nearby. The latter's grave is marked by a simple cross.
` `
Remembering the Maine: The memorial to the USS Maine. Also, in the
cemetery, there is a Confederate section with graves of soldiers of the
Confederate States of America and a Confederate Memorial.
`
Cenotaph memorial honoring the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger. The
Space Shuttle Challenger Memorial was dedicated on May 20, 1986 in
memory of the crew of flight STS-51-L, who died during launch on January
28, 1986. Transcribed on the back of the stone is the text of the John
Gillespie Magee, Jr. poem entitled High Flight. Although many remains
were identified and returned to the families for private burial, some
were not, and were laid to rest under the marker. Two of the crew
members, Scobee and Smith, are buried in Arlington, as well. There is a
similar memorial to those who died when the Shuttle Columbia broke apart
during reentry on February 1, 2003, dedicated on the first anniversary
of the disaster. Astronauts Laurel Clark, David Brown and Michael
Anderson are also buried in Arlington.
` `
There are memorials to those killed in two acts of terrorist violence:
The Pentagon memorial, which takes the shape of the Pentagon, is the
memorial to the 184 victims of the terrorist attack on the Pentagon on
September 11, 2001. The memorial lists the names of all the victims that
were killed.
`
The noted composer, arranger, trombonist and Big Band leader Maj. Alton
Glenn Miller of the U.S. Army Air Forces has been missing in action
since December 15, 1944. Miller was eligible for a memorial headstone in
Arlington National Cemetery as a service member who died on active duty
whose remains were not recoverable.
`
Arlington House flag flying at half-staff.
`
The flag is lowered during interments.
The flags in Arlington National Cemetery are flown at half-staff from a
half hour before the first funeral until a half hour after the last
funeral each day. Funerals are normally conducted five days a week,
excluding weekends.
Funerals, including interments and inurnments, average well over 20 per
day. The Cemetery conducts approximately 5,400 burials each year. With
more than 290,000 people interred there, Arlington National Cemetery has
the second-largest number of people buried of any national cemetery in
the United States.
`
In addition to in-ground burial, Arlington National Cemetery also has
one of the larger columbariums for cremated remains in the country. Four
courts are currently in use, each with 5,000 niches. When construction
is complete, there will be nine courts with a total of 50,000 niches;
capacity for 100,000 remains. `
Respectful silence is requested at Arlington.
`
Military burials
`
Omar N. Bradley (1893-1981), commanded the 12th Army Group in Europe
during World War II, first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
`
Ruby G. Bradley (1907-2002), Colonel and, with 34 medals, one of the
most decorated women in U.S. military history
`
Roger Chaffee (1935-1967) and Gus Grissom (1926-1967), astronauts killed
in the Apollo 1 fire (Edward White was buried at West Point)
`
Rene Gagnon, Ira Hayes and Michael Strank: three of the six servicemen
immortalized in Joe Rosenthal's iconic photo Raising the Flag on Iwo
Jima (Strank was killed in action just days after the photo was taken)
`
Montgomery Cunningham Meigs (1816-1892), Brigadier General. Arlington
National Cemetery was established by Brig. Gen. Montgomery C. Meigs, who
commanded the garrison at Arlington House and appropriated the grounds
on June 15, 1864 for use as a military cemetery. His intention was to
render the house uninhabitable should the Lee family ever attempt to
return. Meigs himself was later buried within 100 yards of Arlington
House with his wife, father and son.
` `
Audie Murphy (1924-1971), U.S. Army, America's most decorated combat
soldier of World War II and popular movie actor
`
George S. Patton IV (1923-2004), Major General of the Army and son of
famed WWII General, George S. Patton
`
Francis Gary Powers (1929-1977), American U-2 pilot shot down over the
Soviet Union in 1960
`
John F. Kennedy (1917-1963), U.S. Navy officer during World War II, U.S.
Representative (1947-1953), U.S. Senator (1953-1961), President of the
United States, (1961-1963).
`
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis 1929-1994 Married to John F.
Kennedy
`
Pierre Charles L'Enfant France, military engineer, architect, and
urban planner; designed the city of Washington
`
Robert Todd Lincoln, Secretary of War, son of former U.S. President
Abraham Lincoln
`
Joe Louis, world heavyweight boxing champion
`
|