Willamette National Cemetery

Willamette National Cemetery
United States
Flag at Graves amphitheatre, 2016
For Veterans of the Armed Forces
Established	1949
Unveiled	1951
Location	45°27′43″N 122°32′32″W / 45.46194°N 122.54222°W / 45.46194; -122.54222 near  Portland, Oregon
Total burials	188,000+

Willamette National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located about 10 miles (16 km) southeast of the city of Portland, Oregon. Administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, it encompasses 269.4 acres (109.0 ha) straddling the county line between Multnomah and Clackamas Counties. As of 2021, there had been 188,000 interments. It is one of three national cemeteries in Oregon (the other two being Roseburg and Eagle Point). On July 5, 2016, the cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[1] The cemetery is built on top of a wide Boring Lava Field cone.

History

Plans to create a military cemetery in the Portland area started as early as 1941, and Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill to establish a national cemetery, but the necessary money to acquire the land was never allocated. Finally, in 1949 the state of Oregon donated 102 acres (41 ha) of land for the establishment of a National Cemetery. Construction was completed in 1950, and Willamette National Cemetery was officially opened on December 14 that year. The first interment did not take place until 1951. In 1952, another 100 acres (40 ha) of land were donated to the cemetery.

Willamette National Cemetery is a Blue Star Memorial Highway site.^{[citation needed]}

Notable monuments

• A Korean War Memorial, dedicated to the 283 people from Oregon who fought and died in that war.

Notable interments

• Medal of Honor recipients
  • Lieutenant Colonel Stanley T. Adams (1922–1999), for action in the Korean War
  • First Lieutenant Arnold L. Bjorklund (1918–1979), for action in World War II
  • Specialist Larry G. Dahl (1949–1971 †), for action in the Vietnam War
  • Sergeant First Class Loren R. Kaufman (1923–1951 †), for action in the Korean War
• Others
  • Alexander G. Barry (1892–1952), United States Senator
  • Carson Bigbee (1895–1964), Major League Baseball player
  • Milt Davis (1929–2008), professional football player
  • George Freese (1926–2014), Major League Baseball player
  • Mark Hatfield (1922–2011), U.S. Senator and Governor of Oregon
  • Scott Leavitt (1879–1966), U.S. Representative from Montana
  • Donald Malarkey (1921–2017), World War II veteran^[2]
  • Thomas E. Martin (1893–1971), U.S. Representative and Senator from Iowa
  • Kenneth L. Reusser (1920–2009), United States Marine Corps aviator
  • Homer Norman Wallin (1893–1984), United States Navy admiral

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Willamette National Cemetery.

• National Cemetery Administration
• Willamette National Cemetery
• Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS) No. OR-3, "Willamette National Cemetery, 11800 Southeast Mount Scott Boulevard, Portland, Multnomah County, OR", 37 photos, 4 photo caption pages
• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Willamette National Cemetery
• Willamette National Cemetery at Find a Grave