Main National Cemetery gates to close Monday for renovation

Saturday, May 1, 2010

FORT SCOTT -- The main gates at the Fort Scott National Cemetery will be closed starting Monday and will remain closed for eight weeks as a major reconstruction project gets underway. Barricades and directional signs will be installed to direct the public and inform them of the change. Visitors will be able to access the cemetery via the 18th Street entrance during the project.

The project at the cemetery will raise and realign the flat and upright stones in the older sections of the cemetery and replace the turf in the cemetery's burial area. Included will be a project to completely rebuild the old wall around the cemetery. Many of the original stones and wall caps from the wall will be used to complete the new wall.

A new water irrigation system will be placed in the cemetery and the roads will be milled and resurfaced. The project will ensure that the cemetery meets NCA's standard's of appearance for national cemeteries and that it is viewed as a national shrine by the public and visitors.

The project will help the cemetery meet VA's National Shrine Commitment, which is "(A)n initiative to maintain the appearance of national cemeteries in a manner befitting their status as national shrines," according to a release sent by FSNC officials.

"A national shrine is a place of honor and memory that declares to the visitor or family member who views it that within its majestic setting each and every veteran may find a sense of serenity, historic sacrifice and nobility of purpose," the release said. "Each visitor should depart feeling that the grounds, the grave sites and the environs of the national cemetery are a beautiful and awe-inspiring tribute to those who gave much to preserve our nation's freedom and way of life."