Sitka National Cemetery
Encyclopedia
Sitka National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery
United States National Cemetery
"United States National Cemetery" is a designation for 146 nationally important cemeteries in the United States. A National Cemetery is generally a military cemetery containing the graves of U.S. military personnel, veterans and their spouses but not exclusively so...
located in the city of Sitka, Alaska. It encompasses 4.3 acres (17,000 m²), and as of the end of 2005 had 1,049 interments. It is administered by Fort Richardson National Cemetery
Fort Richardson National Cemetery
Fort Richardson National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located on the Fort Richardson United States Army installation near Anchorage, Alaska. It encompasses and as of the end of 2006, it had 4,527 interments...
.
History
Laid out by General Jefferson C. DavisJefferson C. Davis
Jefferson Columbus Davis was an officer in the United States Army who served in the Mexican-American War, the Civil War, and the Modoc War. He was the first commander of the Department of Alaska, from 1868 to 1870...
, at some point between 1868 to 1870 during his time as the first commander of the Department of Alaska
Department of Alaska
The Department of Alaska was the designation for the government of Alaska from its purchase by the United States of America in 1867 until its organization as the District of Alaska in 1884. During the department era, Alaska was variously under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army , the United States...
, as a place to inter military personnel who died while serving at the local Marine base or were under care at the Naval hospital. In 1912, the military withdrew from the area and the cemetery was neglected until 1921 when the Sitka American Legion petitioned the Secretary of the Navy for an allocation of funds to maintain the site.
In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
gave an executive order declaring the site a National Cemetery, and the maintenance responsibility was turned over to the United States Department of War
United States Department of War
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department , was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army...
. A 1925 revision of the executive order reduced the area of the site, but donations of land in 1957, 1959, and in the mid 1980s made it larger than it was originally.
Notable monuments
- There are two cannons that serves as a memorial to all those who are interred at the cemetery.
Notable interments
- John Green BradyJohn Green BradyJohn Green Brady was an American politician who was the Governor of the District of Alaska from 1897 to 1906, when he was forced to resign due to his involvement with the fraudulent Reynolds–Alaska Development Company...
, governor of the Territory of Alaska from 1897 to 1906. - Captain Charles William Paddock, OlympicOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold and silver medalist from the 1920, 1924, and 1928 Olympics. - Staff Sergeant Archie Van Winkle, Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient for action in the Korean WarKorean WarThe Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
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See also
- List of cemeteries in Alaska
- United States Department of Veterans AffairsUnited States Department of Veterans AffairsThe United States Department of Veterans Affairs is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. It is the United States government’s second largest department, after the United States Department of Defense...
- United States National CemeteryUnited States National Cemetery"United States National Cemetery" is a designation for 146 nationally important cemeteries in the United States. A National Cemetery is generally a military cemetery containing the graves of U.S. military personnel, veterans and their spouses but not exclusively so...