Quantico National Cemetery

Quantico National Cemetery is located on land that was part of the U.S. Marine Corps training base adjacent to Quantico in Prince William County, Virginia. The land has been used by the military for over 200 years. First, around 1775 by the Commonwealth of Virginia for Navy operations, and later, as a blockade point for the Confederate Army during the Civil War.

In 1918 a permanent Marine base was established at Quantico. The Marine Corps Schools, a forerunner of the Marine Corps Development and Education Command, was created there in 1921. Since 1941, the focus of the base has been individual education rather than unit training. In 1977, the Marine Corps donated 725 acres (2.9 km²) of this land to the Virginia’s National Cemetery Administration, to establish a facility at Quantico. The cemetery was formally dedicated on May 15, 1983.

Monuments and memorials

There are seven memorials in all. A monument to Edson’s Raiders was the first memorial dedicated at Quantico National Cemetery, unveiled on the memorial pathway on August 6, 1989. It is dedicated to the 800 members of the First Marine Raider Battalion, which from August 1942 to October 1943, played a key role in helping the greatly outnumbered American forces push back Japanese troops in the Brigit Solomon Islands.

The Purple Heart Memorial was dedicated August 7, 1990, in honor of Purple Heart medal recipients interred at the cemetery. The Purple Heart was created by George Washington in 1782 and was originally awarded for heroism. It eventually fell into disuse until 1931 when Gen. Douglas MacArthur revived it for soldiers who were wounded or killed in defense of their nation.

Additional memorials honor: Colonel William “Rich” Higgins, Marine Corps, who was captured and held hostage in Lebanon by pro-Iranian Hezbollah terrorists; the Fourth Marine or “Fighting Fourth” Division; the Commonwealth of Virginia Memorial dedicated to honor all of the nation’s veterans; the First Marine Division Memorial, in memory of those who lost their lives while serving with the 1st Marine Division; and the 6th Marine Division or “Striking Sixth” Memorial to honor the division that won the Presidential Unit Citation for its actions in Okinawa during World War II. The memorial design is based on a Japanese tomb.

Notable burials

*Louis R. Lowery, a World War II Marine combat photographer, took the picture of the first U.S. flag rising on top of Iwo Jima's Mount Suribachi in 1945. The flag was said to be the first U.S. flag flown over Japanese territory in World War II. He was interred on April 1, 1987, Section 1, Gravesite 6422.

*General Lewis William Walt, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1968-1971,((and the first Assistant Commandant to hold the rank of full (four-star)general)) had a career that spanned over 35 years and he served through three major wars (WWII, Korea, and Vietnam).During his long and distinguished service, General Walt was awarded two Navy Crosses, two Distinguished Service Medals, one Silver Star, one Legion of Merit and two Purple Hearts. He died at his home in Gulfport, MS on 26Mar1989 and was interred on 30Mar1989 in Section 23. On 11May2000, General Walt was dis-interred from Section 23 and re-interred in Section 17 Grave #51-B to be with his wife Nancy, an Army Nurse during WWII, who had died on 16Apr2000 and was interred in Section 17 Grave#51-A. His official biography,courtesy of the United States Marine Corps History and Museums Division, can be read at http://hqinet001.hqmc.usmc.mil/hd/historical/whos_who/walt_lw.htm.

*Colonel William "Rich" Higgins was captured by a pro-Iranian Shiite Moslem group on February 17, 1988 in Beirut, and subsequently, held hostage while he was serving as chief of a 75 member United National observer group. His kidnappers killed him on July 6, 1990. A marker was in place in the memorial section until his body was found and returned to the U.S., where he was interred on December 30, 1991, in Section 23, Gravesite 141.

*Leon Uris (August 3, 1924 - June 21, 2003) was an American novelist, known for his historical fiction and the deep research that went into his novels. At the age of seventeen Uris joined the United States Marine Corps. He served in the South Pacific as a radioman at Guadalcanal, Tarawa, and New Zealand from 1942 to 1945. In 1950, Esquire magazine bought an article from him and this encouraged him to work on a novel. The result was the best seller Battle Cry, graphically showing the toughness and courage of U.S. Marines in the Pacific. His two bestelling books were Exodus, published in 1958, and Trinity, in 1976. Section 18, Site 635.

External links

* [http://www.cem.va.gov/CEM/cems/nchp/quantico.asp Department of Veteran Affairs National Cemetery Administration: Quantico National Cemetery]