The first two military monuments of Veteran’s Grove, the newest veteran’s section of Lake View Cemetery, were installed on Dec. 5. Submitted photo

With nearly 4,000 veterans buried within its hallowed grounds, Lake View Cemetery remains the county’s preeminent resting place for those who’ve served in uniform.

On June 13, 2015, the cemetery opened its third and latest veteran’s section –Veteran’s Grove– at its north end.

Like its counterparts — Monument Hill and Soldier’s Circle — Veteran’s Grove is expected to have space for several hundreds of burials; indeed, up to 1,000, according to Samuel R. Genco Jr., superintendent and secretary of Lake View Cemetery.

On Dec. 5, Veteran’s Grove received its first two military monuments, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The large granite slabs are 36 inches high when set into the ground and are expected to be the standard marker for all burials in the section.

Genco said there are currently three burials in Veteran’s Grove: George E. “Jack” Smith, a U.S. Army veteran of the Korean War, along with Roger W. Walsh and Timothy F. Cox.

The cemetery is expecting to get a marker for the third burial soon.

“We’re very pleased that we’ve gotten as far as we have with Veteran’s Grove,” Genco said. “It’s been a large project over many years, planned for about a dozen years or more … and it’s really only taken shape physically in the last couple of years. So it’s very gratifying to see it finally up and running.”

Genco said Lake View Cemetery has always been aggressive in finding and identifying veterans, particularly for an area that has a high percentage of veterans compared to its overall population.

“We feel this is really important,” Genco said. “We’ve always had spaces specifically for veterans since about 1862 when the first Civil War casualties started to arrive in Jamestown. Ever since that time, we’ve had dedicated veterans areas continuously.”

Lake View Cemetery currently has approximately 44,000 people buried within its grounds, of which 3,500 are veterans, with 1,200 in Soldier’s Circle alone.

The Lake View Cemetery Association and not-for-profit Friends of Lake View Cemetery Inc., in addition to area foundations and individuals, contributed significant funds for the construction of Veteran’s Grove, which presently include roadways, water and storm drain lines and the lighted 80-foot flagpole on the site.

Future improvements are anticipated as funding allows, including curbing, landscaping, benches, signage, two granite columbaria for the interment of ashes, a stamped concrete plaza around the flagpole and a number of other improvements.

Area individuals and organizations are encouraged to consider contributing to the completion of this project to honor area veterans. For more information, call the cemetery at 665-3206.