National Cemetery Administration
VA Acquires Land to Expand Florence National Cemetery
May 15, 2019
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) National Cemetery Administration announced today that it has acquired 13.35 acres of land from the City of Florence, S.C., to expand Florence National Cemetery.
"Expanding Florence National Cemetery will ensure our Veterans and eligible family members living in northeastern South Carolina will continue to have the access to the benefits they have earned and deserve.," said VA's Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs Randy Reeves. "We will continue to establish new national cemeteries while maintaining existing national cemeteries, with the goal of providing 95% of Veterans with access to a burial option in a VA national, state or tribal Veterans cemetery within 75 miles of their home."
The City of Florence sold the land to the Department of Veterans Affairs for $357,798. The new land is located directly east of and contiguous with the historic side of Florence National Cemetery.
Before the expansion, Florence National Cemetery consisted of 24.95 acres of land, 85% of which had already been developed. More than 13,000 Veterans and eligible family members are interred there. Current estimates project that the additional land will allow for upwards of 30,000 new interments, enough to serve the local Veteran population for the next 100 years.
VA operates 136 national cemeteries and 33 soldiers' lots and monument sites in 40 states and Puerto Rico. For Veterans not buried in a VA national cemetery, VA provides headstones, markers or medallions to commemorate their service. Information on VA burial benefits is available from local VA national cemetery offices, online at https://www.va.gov/burials-memorials/ or by calling VA regional offices toll-free at 800-827-1000. To make burial arrangements at any open VA national cemetery at the time of need, call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117.
For more information about the Florence National Cemetery, contact the Director of Florence National Cemetery, Carolyn Howard, at 843-669-8783 or visit https://www.cem.va.gov/cem/cems/nchp/florence.asp.
