clearly show the enormous need for a national cemetery in Pennsylvania-either at Gettysburg or near the Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, or at a suitable place to be selected. The concept of a national cemetery system developed during the Civil War, primarily to provide a place fitting for the interment of veterans of that war. The precedent has been established. This is not a new idea or program. Interment for veterans of American wars has been provided for years. Certainly this policy should be continued. The two national cemeteries located in Pennsylvania-Philadelphia and Gettysburg-have long been closed to future interments, according to a report of former Secretary of the Army Hon. Wilbur M. Brucker, October 9, 1957. The American Legion of Pennsylvania believes, requests, and urges that the Congress of the United States provide at least one sizable area for a national cemetery within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is a State that has always given most generously of its young men whenever our country called for manpower for military service. The American Legion, Department of Pennsylvania, found that the average cost of funerals in Pennsylvania now approaches $700 per interment, including cemetery plot and casket and mortuary services. In major metropolitan areas the cost is higher in most instances; Philadelphia, for example, reports more than $1,000 per veteran funeral. National and local burial allowances, combined, barely approach this cost to bury an honorable discharged veteran. (In Pennsylvania there are no State allowances; counties pay up to $75 provided the cost of the funeral does not exceed $800.) The American Legion in Pennsylvania admits that it is not probable that even as many as half of the present veteran population will demand national cemetery interments. But for those who honestly desire this honor, and for those who will honestly need Government interment, we sincerely believe it to be a proper Federal Government function and duty to provide areas for national cemetery privileges. I respectfully urge the committee to take action to provide at least one national cemetery at this time for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Sincerely, JOHN C. KUNKEL, STATEMENT OF HON. ARNOLD OLSEN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF MONTANA Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to testify before you here today. The need for legislation to enlarge national cemeteries should have been obvious immediately after World War I, if the U.S. Government were to provide burial benefits for its veterans that would offer accessible and desirable places of interment. The number of veterans eligible for burial in a national cemetery at that time more than justified additional acreage. It is also true that there were available grave sites or acreage which could be developed in the then-existing national cemeteries. Today there are 17 States which have no national cemetery within their borders; and in those States containing national cemeteries, travel to these cemeteries involves distances of from 100 to 300 or more miles for the majority of resident veterans' families. At this point, I would like to submit for the record a list of the national cemetery installations having available grave space, which has been provided me by the Quartermaster Corps of the Army. Estimates of the number of eligible veterans in the continental United States as of this date place the figure at roughly 22,500,000, and it is also estimated that by the year 1972 this figure will have increased to 26,600,000. The probable death rate of eligible veterans in the year 1966 is calculated to be in the neighborhood of 214,000, while in the year 1972 the death rate for veterans is expected to rise to 2,500,000. In the 1990's the veteran mortality rate will drop back to 1 million per year. It is also interesting to note that the death rate figures cited are based upon an assumption that the armed services will not increase in size. In short, we know that any increase in the number of service men over assumed levels will act to shorten the time when our national cemeteries will run out of burial sites. Adequate consideration has not heretofore been given to the problem of additional acreage in the national cemeteries. The situation before World War II and the years immediately following did not attract the attention which this matter now merits because of the increasing magnitude of the problem today and in the future. Such burials formerly had included only veterans of the Indian wars, Civil War, Spanish-American War, and World War I. In total numbers they did not bulk large in comparison to the combined number of those who served in World War II, Korea, and in the peacetime Military Establishment since Korea. The latter being also eligible for interment in national cemeteries. In the entire State of Montana, there is but one national cemetery installation, namely the Custer National Cemetery. If I may, I would like to summarize the history of this historic grave site. It was by virtue of an Executive order, in 1886, that the Custer Battlefield and the cemetery were proclaimed the National Cemetery of Custer's Battlefield Reservation. The name was changed to Custer Battlefield National Monument in 1946. The monument, containing 765 acres, includes, in addition to the cemetery, that portion of the battlefield where the most severe fighting occurred, the ridge where Custer and his men died, and the scene of the engagement of the Reno-Benteen forces. In 1931, 1,421 soldiers and civilians from Fort Smith, Fort Philip Kearny, Fort Magginis, Fort Abraham Lincoln, and Fort Keogh were reburied at the Custer Cemetery. It should also be noted that since the time when the cemetery was set aside in 1886, no new legislation had been introduced to either implement or improve the site. Funds have been extremely meager and improvements at the battle site have been correspondingly extremely slow. A prime example is the wire fence around the spot where Custer fell. There should be a more appropriate monument to tell where that gallant soldier fell. This monument site is in an area of scenic beauty. It is a great tourist attraction. There were some 146,500 visitations to the area in 1960, an increase of 100 percent over the 10-year period, 1950–60. In addition, the Yellowtail Dam and Reservoir, at a point 45 miles south and west of Hardin, Mont., will be the key feature to the entire irrigation development in the lower Bighorn Basin. This dam and reservoir because of outstanding scenic surroundings and excellent fishing potentialities is expected to influence the development of a sizable area in southern Montana and northern Wyoming for recreational activity and should attract substantially increased numbers of tourists from other States. The Custer Cemetery is in a somewhat congested area. It is located in the center of the National Park Service headquarters area. This area includes the superintendent's residence and other related employee establishments. The monument entrance road also goes immediately past the cemetery area. It is my recommendation that the National Park Service consider relocating the administration building and other buildings which may detract from the beauty of the site. These buildings in my opinion should be relocated in an area removed from this historic national cemetery. It is my understanding that the National Park Service intends to close the Custer National Cemetery after the existing available burial sites are filled. However, in view of the requests being made for burial in the Custer National Cemetery from such distant places as Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, and also from the veterans of my State of Montana, I cannot accept the proposition that the only national cemetery in Montana be closed to further burials. I contend that in view of the increasing demands by veterans, an increase in the presently allotted acreage for grave sites at the cemetery should be provided. Today, the land for expanding the cemetery is available for purchase. Sometime in the future it may not be available. I am convinced that in providing for the additional acreage, suitable land can be acquired at a price from $20 to $40 an acre. I believe these prices are quite reasonable, in view of the exorbitant prices being paid for land for cemetery purposes in the metropolitan areas of the country. This matter is one of considerable concern to me and the people of my State. I hope my proposal for site improvement, and expansion of this historic national cemetery will meet with your favorable consideration. STATEMENT OF CONGRESSMAN AUGUST E. JOHANSEN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF MICHIGAN Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the privilege of filing this statement with the Subcommittee on National Parks of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs in connection with the subcommittee's hearings on the question of national cemeteries. My own statement, together with the attached communications from various veterans organizations in the State of Michigan and in my own third congressional district, are submitted in this manner for the record pursuant to the subcommittee's ruling that it will receive no oral testimony on individual cemetery problems. My statement and documentation relate to my bill, H.R. 409, to provide for a national cemetery at Fort Custer, Mich., which I introduced in the 87th Congress early in 1961. I had previously introduced similar bills in the 84th, 85th, and 86th Congresses. My reasons for introducing this and previous bills are as follows: 1. Although there are more than 1,250,000 veterans residing in Michigan, we have no national cemetery in the State and where burial of a veteran in a national cemetery is requested by the relatives, or where a veteran in a Michigan veterans hospital dies without relatives, the body must be sent to Illinois, Indiana, or Tennessee. This involves high transportation costs. Also involved is the fact that with a cemetery in Michigan, survivors and relatives would not be under prohibitive expense in visiting the cemetery. 2. There is at present a post cemetery at Fort Custer with land adjacent to it, now owned by the Government as part of Fort Custer (which is deactivated), which could add several hundred acres to the cemetery with a minimum of landscaping. Water, drainage, and sewage can be made available at small cost. This cemetery is accessible from a four-lane interstate highway. It is 9 miles from Battle Creek and 18 miles from Kalamazoo, Mich. 3. As the attached statements indicate, veterans organizations of the State of Michigan are solidly behind this bill. I am aware that since the hearings of your subcommittee have been devoted primarily to future broad policies with respect to the national cemetery system, consideration of specific legislation such as H.R. 409 and decision thereon will be contingent upon these broader policy decisions. Nevertheless, I am anxious to have the record indicate the deep interest of the veterans organizations of Michigan and the third district in the Fort Custer proposal-an interest which I share. Following are the communications which I have received from State and local veterans organizations in support of the proposal: AUGUST E. JOHANSEN, DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS, BATTLE CREEK CHAPTER No. 7, Congressman, Third District, Michigan, House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. DEAR SIR: Battle Creek Disabled American Veterans Chapter No. 7 is interested in knowing the progress being made in obtaining the proposed national cemetery in Fort Custer, Mich. It has all the requirements necessary for a cemetery and it is owned by the Government. The area, closeness to surrounding States, highway access, air access, facilities all set up which would lessen costs, etc. We would appreciate your intense study of the above potentialities and pass them on to the committee in charge. We understand the need for a new cemetery and our servicemen in this midwestern area will have the best at Fort Custer. Thanking you for your cooperation, I remain, ROGER H. DILLENBECK, Commander. To: House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs. From: Department of Michigan Veterans of Foreign Wars, Lansing, Mich. The Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Michigan, respectfully submits for your committee's earnest consideration a plea for the establishment of a national cemetery in Michigan, with the following supporting facts: A. The State of Michigan has no national cemetery, although it is seventh in veterans' population in the Nation. B. Land for this purpose is available at no cost at Fort Custer (Battle Creek), Mich. C. The site located at Battle Creek has presently a small Armed Forces cemetery (not a national cemetery) located thereon, with a large area available for expansion. D. There are adequate roads and drainage. The entire area can, at a very small cost, be easily converted into a national cemetery. E. Within a radius of 125 miles of Battle Creek, Mich., including the northern parts of Indiana and Illinois, there are conservatively 2,500,000 veterans. F. The nearest national cemetery from Battle Creek is a distance of 300 miles, and 500 miles from the top of the lower peninsula of Michigan. The membership of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Michigan, urges your serious attention to this problem. There is an acute, urgent, and dire need for the establishment of a national cemetery in Michigan. DEAR SIR: For the last few years, Battle Creek area citizens and veterans have been asking for your assistance in locating a national cemetery in Battle Creek, Mich., at our Fort Custer. The fort is suitably located for Michigan and the surrounding States. Space is available and it is Government owned, transportation is all that one could ask for, access by highway is the best in the country, as for veterans, Michigan is second to none. All the potential is here. We appreciate what you have been doing in the past, but we would appreciate your efforts to convince the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs that Fort Custer, Mich., is their suitable choice for a cemetery in this Midwest area. We thank you for your cooperation in this matter. Our understanding is that there is a lack of space for burial of our servicemen and something must be done to alleviate the problem. Please feel free to request any information that you may need in the above matter. Yours in comradeship, GUS F. HIRAKIS, Commander. UNITED WAR VETERANS COUNCIL, Subject: Proposed national cemetery, Fort Custer, Mich. AUGUST E. JOHANSEN, Congressman, Third District, Michigan, House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. DEAR SIR: The Battle Creek United War Veterans Council represents all the active veterans' organizations in the Battle Creek area and we are in unanimous agreement that Michigan should have a national cemetery. The veterans of this area have been interested in the above project for some time, and we feel that our Fort Custer has all the advantages which we feel would be the requirements necessary for a national cemetery. To cite some advantages; space for at least 20,000 graves, all types of transportation, two railroads coming into Battle Creek, W. K. Kellogg Airfield to handle all types of air transportation, highway connections with all the surrounding States, readily available space with Fort Custer being Government-owned property, four-lane highway leading from the city directly into Fort Custer. All the above-mentioned items are here for an inspection at any time by the committee involved in allotting a national cemetery. We appreciate the time you have spent investigating the possibilities on the above-mentioned project, but we urge you to exert more effort to give Michigan and the surrounding States a national cemetery. We know that the existing cemeteries are running out of space for our veterans and the need for more space is urgent. We have the space, the location, and the advantages. We feel that the committee should act quickly. Michigan stands out as one of the leading States having sent more men into the services and the veterans' population in the State is one of the largest in the Nation. Thanking you for your cooperation. I remain, ALBERT M. Moss, Secretary. Hon. AUGUST E. JOHANSEN, House Office Building, Washington, D.C.: DETROIT, MICH., March 6, 1962. We are please to learn that the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs is holding hearings this week on national cemetery policy. The Disabled American Veterans, Department of Michigan, wishes to reiterate the need for a national cemetery in Michigan and have gone on record a number of times in our State conventions to that effect. The closest national military cemetery to Michigan, accepting veterans for burial at this time, is at Rock Island, Ill. This is so remote from Michigan that very little use is being made of that national cemetery by the veterans of Michigan. Surviving relatives feel that it is entirely too far away for them to visit and decorate the gravesite. Michigan has 1,260,000 veterans and was seventh among all the States in the number of its sons sent into service during World War II. We, therefore, feel that our State should be entitled to a national military cemetery. Fort Custer, near Battle Creek, Mich., is made to order for a national cemetery, in our opinion. The land is already owned by the Government and there is plenty of room to expand the current 1,000-grave post cemetery by annexing upward of 300 acres adjoining it. We understand that this land has an 8-inch water main running its full length, that it has adequate drainage facilities, and that it was inspected in 1956 for suitability by governmental representatives. Apparently, the only cost to the Government would be in operating and maintaining this cemetery. Being 9 miles from Battle Creek and 18 miles from Kalamazoo, it is well located and is accessible by Dickman Road, an arterial road from Fort Custer to Battle Creek. Dickman Road also connects with the new Interstate Highway System's Interstate 94 as well as Michigan 96 and old U.S. 12, the Red Arrow Highway. We are told that blueprints of this site were drawn up and presented to you in 1955. A copy of our most recent convention resolution supporting this cemetery was forwarded to you on July 18, 1961. We do appreciate your past cooperation and earnestly solicit your continued aid toward establishing a national military cemetery at Fort Custer. BERNARD O. KILLIN, Legislative Chairman, Disabled American Veterans. |