State-Operated 73-Acre Horton Cemetery to Open Next September

SUFFOLK, VA-National and state officials have gotten together to break ground for the new 73-acre Albert G. Horton Memorial Veterans Cemetery, a state burial facility for US military veterans. Virginia paid $650,000 for the parcel four years ago, and will now contribute $6.5 million toward the development of the project. Ultimately, the cemetery will offer 10,000 ground burial plots, a crematory to accommodate 3,000, an additional 2,100 in-ground plots for interred remains, and nearly 2,000 columbarium niches.

“I commend the outstanding team of state employees from the Veterans Services and General Services departments who expertly guided this project to this great day when we can move ahead with construction,” Gov. Mark R. Warner says in a statement from the recent groundbreaking ceremony, which was also attended by US Veterans Administration Under-Secretary for Memorial Affairs John Nicholson. “This project means so much to the 780,000 military veterans who call Virginia home.” The Commonwealth of Virginia will staff and manage operations of the facility upon its completion. Phase I of the construction project is expected to wrap up next September.