SAVMC Honors 15th Anniversary of Opening of Historical Soldiers Section

SIERRA VISTA, Ariz.- Inside the Southern Arizona Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery (SAVMC) lies a very special ‘cemetery inside a cemetery’ that houses dozens of service members dating back to the American Civil War, which serves as a historical memorial tribute since its inception 15 years ago.

The Historic Soldiers Cemetery at SAVMC is now the final resting place for 61 Cavalry and Infantry soldiers who died between the 1860s and 1880s. 53 of those remains have been identified.

Bringing the Historic Soldiers Cemetery to Sierra Vista was SAVMC Cemetery Administrator Joe Larson’s passion project after learning about the remains in 2006. He was approached by the Joint Courts Archeology Project after several remains were discovered while excavating a parking lot near Tool and Alameda in downtown Tucson.

The 61 service members, among others, were previously buried in a cemetery in downtown Tucson that had been abandoned before World War I. The graves were covered by homes and other new construction.

The project was designated an official Arizona Centennial Legacy Project by the Arizona Historical Advisory Commission.

“It’s a great honor to have these historical soldiers remains buried with us,” Joe said. “Our actions to aggressively petition for their remains meant their legacy would live on in perpetuity instead of them resting in a mass county gravesite without the appropriate recognition they deserve.”

It took several years before SAVMC welcomed the historic graves to the cemetery due to legal steps that needed to be done to ensure the remains were treated with dignity and the next-of-kin were notified. Joe also worked with the SAVMC Foundation, local leaders and consulted with the National Cemetery Administration on the best way to memorialize the service members and create a separate burial section for them.

With the help of private funding from the SAVMC Foundation, the cemetery was able to open the Historical Soldier Section in May 16, 2009. To commemorate the achievement, Joe organized the largest military honors ceremony in the history of Arizona—over 120 soldiers simultaneously folded and presented 61 flags and former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords led a 2-mile long escort from Tucson to SAVMC.

“We spent three years hard at work, petitioning, researching the soldiers, coordinating honors and constructing the cemetery,” Joe said. “It was a three-day event and a once in a life time moment.”

To continue the upkeep of the Historical Soldiers Section, SAVMC started the “Pave the Past” fundraiser, where individuals can purchase inscribed bricks to be placed in the walkway through the section.

For more information on the Historical Soldiers Relocation or to donate to the “Pave the Past” visit https://www.savmcf.org/hsrp.php