Clark Veterans Cemetery
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (December 2012) |
| Clark Veterans Cemetery | |
|---|---|
Clark Freeport Zone, Angeles City, Pampanga | |
| Country | Philippines |
| Coordinates | 15°10′03″N 120°34′28″E / 15.167444°N 120.574519°E |
| Type | Military |
| Owned by | Philippine government, managed by American Battle Monuments Commission[2] |
| Size | 20.365 acres (8.241 ha) |
| No. of interments | 8,600+[1] |
| Website | Official website |
| Find a Grave | Clark Veterans Cemetery |
Clark Veterans Cemetery is located in
History
The origins of the Clark Veterans Cemetery can be traced to 1900 after the conclusion of the
Remains moved to Clark
After World War II, in 1946, the US and Philippine governments determined that this site would be the best location for a new cemetery and memorial to honor those who died throughout
The Clark Veterans Cemetery is located just inside the main gate of the former base and consists of 20.365 acres (8.241 ha) with room for 12,000 plots. Work began on preparation of the new site in 1947 with the first batch of graves used for burial of remains arriving from Fort McKinley in January 1948. By December 1950 all of the non-World War II dead from Fort McKinley, Sangley Point and Stotsenburg I and II were consolidated in the new Clark Veterans Cemetery, with 5,056 remains having been relocated. This then enabled construction of the new
Mount Pinatubo damage and restoration efforts
The
In 1994, veterans from Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 2485 stepped forward to help halt the decay.[3] After 3 years of neglect, members of the Post volunteered to remove overgrown vegetation and removing ash. Since then, VFW Post 2485 members have administered and maintained the cemetery in a ‘state of arrested decay’.
A
In 2011, an American small business, Peregrine Development International, operating at Clark in conjunction with the Kuwaiti sponsored Global Gateway Logistics City Project, collaborated with the VFW Post 2485 to donate and construct a new perimeter fence and gate.
Present status
Today, the Clark Veterans Cemetery contains the remains of almost 8,600 individuals with the earliest recorded burial being Private Santiago Belona, a Philippine Scout who served in the US Army and died on January 13, 1900.
While the majority of all burials are American veterans, Philippine Scouts and their dependents, there are some exceptions authorized by the US Government for burial. For example, there are several hundred civilians who served in the US Army Quartermaster Department as
There are a few foreign nationals buried in the cemetery. All such burials are directly approved and authorized by the US Government. These persons died on the various military posts and include nine
From the cemetery's initial inception and existence on the various military posts from as early as 1900, through the consolidation and moves to Fort Stotsenburg in 1948, the cemeteries had been solely administered by the US Army and US Navy. In 1949 when the US Air Force assumed responsibility for Fort Stotsenburg and it was officially renamed
By special agreement with the Philippine Government, the cemetery remains open for burials of American Veterans and Philippine Scouts. The VFW Post provides full military honors. There are an average of 40 burials a year, exclusively veterans, including many World War II and Vietnam era warriors. In 2004, a young soldier serving in Iraq was killed in an IED incident and is buried in the cemetery. He was the first Iraq War fatality to be interred in Clark Veterans Cemetery.
There are several monuments and commemorative memorials in the cemetery. The largest is a six and a half foot obelisk marble Monument to Unknown Dead. This monument was constructed of
In January 2013, the United States authorized $5 million to restore the cemetery, and placed the cemetery under the
Following the resumption of American maintenance of the cemetery, there was a dispute between the American and Philippine governments about who shall be authorized to buried at the cemetery in the future.[8] In December 2016, it was recommended that the cemetery name be changed to "Clark American Cemetery" and that it be negotiated with the Philippine government that the operation of the cemetery be changed to "in perpetuity".[9] By 2019, restoration of the cemetery, at the cost of several million dollars, was completed.[10] Increasingly, the cemetery has become surrounded by Chinese-led new developments.[11]
Notes
- ^ a b cvcra FAQ
- ^ a b "Clark Veterans Cemetery". American Battle Monuments Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
- ^ a b c d Simone Orendain (25 February 2013). "'Forgotten' Cemetery in Philippines Gets US Recognition". Hawaii Reporter. Angeles City, Philippines. VOA News. Retrieved 1 March 2013.
- ^ History of the Cemetery'
- ^ Additional information on the cemetery may be found at the VFW cemetery page and Clark Veterans Cemetery Restoration Association (CVCRA) page.
- ^ Jeff Schogol (10 January 2013). "U.S. OKs $5M for Philippines cemetery repairs". Air Force Times. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
- ^ "Clark Veterans Cemetery News December 13, 2013". Archived from the original on January 5, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
- ^ Quismundo, Tarra (11 January 2015). "Clark cemetery now a PH-US 'battleground'". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
- ^ American Battle Monuments Commission (28 January 2019). American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) meeting minutes, 2013-2017 (PDF) (Report). Retrieved 11 December 2019 – via governmentattic.org.
- ^ William M. Matz (12 March 2019). Written Statement Before The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies (PDF) (Report). United States House of Representatives. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
- ^ McLaughlin, Timothy (8 May 2019). "A U.S. Ally Is Turning to China to 'Build, Build, Build'". The Atlantic. Washington, D.C.: Atlantic Media. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
Sources
External links
