View source for Willamette National Cemetery

{{Short description|Veterans cemetery in Multnomah County, Oregon}}
{{Infobox military memorial
|name=Willamette National Cemetery
|body=[[United States]]
|image=Graves amphitheatre flag - Willamette National Cemetery Oregon.jpg
|caption=Flag at Graves amphitheatre, 2016
|commemorates=Veterans of the Armed Forces
|use_dates=
|coordinates={{coord|45|27|43|N|122|32|32|W|type:landmark_region:US-OR_source:gnis|display=inline,title}}
|nearest_town= [[Portland, Oregon]]
|designer=
|inscription=
|established=1949
|unveiled=1951
|total= 188,000+
|unknowns=
|commemorated=
|by_country=
|by_war=
|source=
}}
'''Willamette National Cemetery''' is a [[United States National Cemetery]] located about {{convert|10|mi|km}} southeast of the city of [[Portland, Oregon]]. Administered by the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs]], it encompasses {{convert|269.4|acre}} straddling the county line between [[Multnomah County, Oregon|Multnomah]] and [[Clackamas County, Oregon|Clackamas]] Counties. As of 2021, there had been 188,000 interments. It is one of three national cemeteries in Oregon (the other two being [[Roseburg National Cemetery|Roseburg]] and [[Eagle Point National Cemetery|Eagle Point]]).  On July 5, 2016, the cemetery was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nrhp-weekly">{{cite web |url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2016-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf |title=National Register of Historic Places Weekly Lists 2016 |at=Weekly list of actions taken on properties: 7/05/16 through 7/08/16 |date=2016 |work=National Register of Historic Places Program: Weekly List |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=2023-08-07}}</ref> The cemetery is built on top of a wide [[Boring Lava Field]] [[Cinder cone|cone]].

== History ==
Plans to create a military cemetery in the Portland area started as early as 1941, and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] signed a bill to establish a national cemetery, but the necessary money to acquire the land was never allocated. Finally, in 1949 the state of [[Oregon]] donated {{convert|102|acre}} of land for the establishment of a National Cemetery. Construction was completed in 1950, and Willamette National Cemetery was officially opened on December 14 that year. The first interment did not take place until 1951. In 1952, another {{convert|100|acre}} of land were donated to the cemetery.

Willamette National Cemetery is a [[Blue Star Memorial Highway]] site.{{citation needed|date=July 2016}}

== Notable monuments ==
* A Korean War Memorial, dedicated to the 283 people from Oregon who fought and died in that war.

== Notable interments ==
[[File:Willamette National Cemetery, Oregon (2013) - 07.JPG|thumb|right|Korean War Memorial, 2013]]
* Medal of Honor recipients
** Lieutenant Colonel [[Stanley T. Adams]] (1922–1999), for action in the Korean War
** First Lieutenant [[Arnold L. Bjorklund]] (1918–1979), for action in [[World War II]]
** Specialist [[Larry G. Dahl]] (1949–1971{{KIA}}), for action in the Vietnam War
** Sergeant First Class [[Loren R. Kaufman]] (1923–1951{{KIA}}), for action in the Korean War
* Others
** [[Alexander G. Barry]] (1892–1952), United States Senator
** [[Harve Bennett]] (1930-2015), American television and film producer and screenwriter
** [[Carson Bigbee]] (1895–1964), Major League Baseball player
** [[Milt Davis]] (1929–2008), professional football player
** [[George Freese]] (1926–2014), Major League Baseball player
** [[Mark Hatfield]] (1922–2011), U.S. Senator and Governor of Oregon
** [[Scott Leavitt]] (1879–1966), U.S. Representative from Montana
** [[Donald Malarkey]] (1921–2017), [[World War II]] veteran<ref>[http://www.dailyastorian.com/obituaries/20171003/obituary-donald-george-malarkey Obituary: Donald George Malarkey]</ref>
** [[Thomas E. Martin]] (1893–1971), U.S. Representative and Senator from [[Iowa]]
** [[Dane Paresi]] (1963 - 2009),  United States Army Master Sergeant and military contractor for the CIA killed in [[Camp Chapman attack]]
** [[Kenneth L. Reusser]] (1920–2009), United States Marine Corps aviator
** [[Homer Norman Wallin]] (1893–1984), United States Navy admiral

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Willamette National Cemetery}}
{{Portal|National Register of Historic Places|Oregon}}
* [http://www.cem.va.gov/ National Cemetery Administration]
* [http://www.cem.va.gov/CEM/cems/nchp/willamette.asp Willamette National Cemetery]
* {{HALS |survey=OR-3 |id=or0575 |title=Willamette National Cemetery, 11800 Southeast Mount Scott Boulevard, Portland, Multnomah County, OR |photos=37 |cap=4}}
* {{GNIS|type=retired|1129101}}
* {{Find a Grave cemetery}}

{{Lents, Portland, Oregon}}

[[Category:1949 establishments in Oregon]]
[[Category:Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon]]
[[Category:Historic American Landscapes Survey in Oregon]]
[[Category:Lents, Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:Protected areas of Clackamas County, Oregon]]
[[Category:Protected areas of Multnomah County, Oregon]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Clackamas County, Oregon]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:United States national cemeteries]]
[[Category:Cascade Volcanoes]]
[[Category:Volcanoes of Oregon]]
[[Category:Cinder cones of the United States]]