Fort Lyon National Cemetery is a

United States National Cemetery The United States National Cemetery System is a system of 164 cemeteries in the United States and its territories. The authority to create military burial places came during the American Civil War, in an act passed by the U.S. Congress o ...

located near the city of Las Animas in

Bent County, Colorado Bent County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,650. The county seat and only incorporated municipality is Las Animas. The county is named in honor of frontier trader William Bent. Hi ...

. It encompasses 51.9 acres (21.0 hectares) and as of 2014 had 2,556 interments. It is administered by the

Fort Logan National Cemetery Fort Logan National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado. Fort Logan, a former U.S. Army installation, was named after Union General John A. Logan, commander of US Volunteer forces during the American Civil War. It co ...

Denver County, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

History

Named for the first

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

General to die in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

Nathaniel Lyon Nathaniel Lyon (July 14, 1818 – August 10, 1861) was the first Union general to be killed in the American Civil War. He is noted for his actions in Missouri in 1861, at the beginning of the conflict, to forestall secret secessionist plans of th ...

, the cemetery was established as part of

Fort Lyon Fort Lyon was composed of two 19th-century military fort complexes in southeastern Colorado. The initial fort, also called Fort Wise, operated from 1860 to 1867. After a flood in 1866, a new fort was built near Las Animas, Colorado, which oper ...

the first time in 1887. The fort was abandoned in 1897 and the remains buried in the cemetery were transferred to

Fort McPherson National Cemetery Fort McPherson National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery, located south of the village of Maxwell in Lincoln County, Nebraska. Administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, it encompasses , and as of 2014, it had ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

. In 1906 the fort buildings were converted into a sanitarium to treat soldiers and prisoners of war with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

, and burials began in 1907. The cemetery was transferred to the National Cemetery system in 1973 to be managed by the

United States Department of Veterans Affairs The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers a ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2017.

External links

National Cemetery Administration

Fort Lyon National Cemetery
* * * {{Forts in Colorado Cemeteries in Colorado Protected areas of Bent County, Colorado United States national cemeteries Historic American Landscapes Survey in Colorado National Register of Historic Places in Bent County, Colorado Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado 1887 establishments in Colorado 1897 disestablishments in the United States 1907 establishments in Colorado