Sarasota 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 in

Sarasota County, Florida Sarasota County is a county located in Southwest Florida. At the 2020 US census, the population was 434,006. Its county seat is Sarasota and its largest city is North Port. Sarasota County is part of the North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton, FL ...

. Administered 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 is the sixth national cemetery developed in Florida.

History

The

Veterans Administration 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 ...

was authorized to establish six new burial sites by the National Cemetery Expansion Act of 2003, enacted on November 11, 2003. Areas not served by an existing National Cemetery and having at least 170,000 veteran residents included: Department of Veterans Affairs, Burial, and Memorials, New National Cemeteries * Bakersfield, California *

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

Southeastern Pennsylvania The Delaware Valley is a metropolitan region on the East Coast of the United States that comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the sixth most populous city in the nation and 68th largest city in the world as of 2020. The toponym Delaware Val ...

* Columbia- Greenville, South Carolina Groundbreaking and dedication at the Sarasota site was held on June 1, 2008. The first

interment Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

was on January 9, 2009.

Site status

The plan for development of the facility is composed of three phases, but only the first phase has been funded, at $27.8 million to accommodate 25,000 burials. Initial construction on those began in June 2008 and created space for 18,200 casket burials within 15,200 designated crypts, 7,000

columbarium A columbarium (; pl. columbaria) is a structure for the reverential and usually public storage of funerary urns, holding cremated remains of the deceased. The term can also mean the nesting boxes of pigeons. The term comes from the Latin "''colu ...

niches, and 500 in-ground cremations. The grounds were consecrated in December 2008, prior to the first burials. Phase one includes an entrance, roadways within the section, a public information center with restrooms, and two solar-powered shelters for committal services during inclement weather. Infrastructure consisting of drainage, landscaping, irrigation, and utilities also is being built. Permanent buildings for administration and maintenance were scheduled for completion in 2010. The 2,800-seat ceremonial amphitheater “Patriot Plaza”, donated by The Patterson Foundation of Sarasota, was completed June 28, 2014.

Notable burials

* Abner M. Aust (1921-2020), United States Air Force colonel and flying ace in World War II *

Rick Casares Richard Jose Casares (July 4, 1931 – September 13, 2013) was an American professional football player who was a fullback in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) for twelve seasons during the 1950s and 1960s. ...

(1931–2013), United States Army soldier in the Korean War and professional football player *

Marty Springstead Martin John Springstead (July 9, 1937 – January 17, 2012) was an umpire in Major League Baseball who worked in the American League from 1966 to 1985 and had since worked as an umpire supervisor. He was the youngest umpire ever to serve as crew c ...

(1937–2012), United States Army veteran and Major League Baseball umpire * Hal White (1919–2001), United States Navy veteran of World War II, and Major League Baseball pitcher

References

External links

National Cemetery Administration

Sarasota National Cemetery
* * {{GNIS, type=retired, 2498898 2009 establishments in Florida Cemeteries in Florida United States national cemeteries Buildings and structures in Sarasota, Florida Protected areas of Sarasota County, Florida Monuments and memorials in Florida Tourist attractions in Sarasota County, Florida Cemeteries established in the 2000s