Little Rock Nat'l Cemetery

Located just outside of downtown is the Little Rock National Cemetery. It was established back in 1866, as a centralized resting place for Union soldiers who had been previously buried across the state during the Civil War. Some of the very first burials were reinterments of soldiers who had been buried in places like Pine Bluff, DeVall’s Bluff, Lewisburg, Princeton, and Marks' Mill. Later on, the cemetery was expanded to included the graves of Confederate soldiers. Now the cemetery contains the graves of over 25,000 people.



The first National Cemeteries were established after the Civil War, and now there are 172 National Cemeteries scattered across the country. There are three in Arkansas, the others being in Fort Smith and Fayetteville. The Little Rock cemetery is full, with verterans now being buried at a new cemetery in North Little Rock. The last burial to be held at the Little Rock National Cemetery was of an active-duty soldier who was killed at the Pentagon during the September 11 attacks.