Burial at Danville National Cemetery: A family guide

History of Danville National Cemetery

Danville National Cemetery is located in Vermilion County, IL, at the eastern side of the VA Illiana Health Care System. This area once belonged to the Miami, Kickapoo and Pottowatomie tribes of the Algonquin Indians. Salt deposits located on the Vermilion River attracted a variety of wildlife that served as a constant food supply for the local Native Americans; they later attracted the first white settlers to the region. In 1818, the Kickapoo ceded a large area of land to the federal government, including what is now Vermilion County. In the mid-1800s, coal miners settled in the Danville area, and soon the region ranked as Illinois' top coal producer. From 1841 to 1859, Abraham Lincoln practiced law in Danville; in 1852, he established a law practice with Ward Lamon. This was Lincoln's only permanent law office in the Illinois circuit.

Although no Civil War battles occurred here, many men from Danville volunteered for the Union. The men who returned home were often sick, wounded or disabled. In 1897, Congress authorized the establishment of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Danville. The next year, a small plot of land was set aside as a burial site; it was subsequently designated a national cemetery in 1898. In 1901, the present cemetery was plotted and the remains of those buried in the old cemetery were reinterred at the new site.

In 1930, the Soldiers Home was transferred to the Veterans Administration (VA), and the cemetery became part of the VA Cemetery System. An internal study of the VA Cemetery System in 1948 recommended that the cemetery be transferred to the Department of the Army. No action was taken, however, and in 1973 when the National Cemetery System was reassigned from the Department of the Army to the Veterans Administration, it was merged into the National Cemetery System. Danville National Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.

Monuments and Memorials The Civil War Soldiers Monument was dedicated on Memorial Day 1917 to the "men who offered their lives in defense of their country." The United States had entered World War I the month before. The federal government built it, at the cost of $6,000, as the focal point of a circular-plan cemetery at the Danville Branch-National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers (now VA Illiana Health Care System). Each National Home cemetery features a large, singular monument to honor veterans interred there. A plaza surrounds a granite base supporting the life-sized bronze by W. Clark Noble (1858–1938), a sculptor recognized for military monuments and portraits of American statesmen. This figure of a soldier holding a musket was used thirteen years earlier for the 100th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Monument installed at Antietam National Battlefield, Maryland.

Notable veterans buried at Danville National Cemetery

The National Cemetery Administration documents the following veterans of note buried at Danville National Cemetery, listed by section and site as recorded in the cemetery's official register.

• Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action against an enemy force that can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the Armed Services of the United States. Recipients receive the Medal of Honor from the President on behalf of Congress. It was first awarded during the Civil War and the eligibility criteria, medal design, and recognition on a recipients' grave marker have all evolved over time. There are 434 Medal of Honor recipients interred at VA national cemeteries including 6 double recipients.
• » Medal of Honor recipients interred or memorialized here:
• Lieutenant Morton A. Read (Civil War). He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, Company D, 8th New York Cavalry, for actions at Appomattox Station, Virginia, April 8, 1865. Read died in 1921 and is buried in Section 10, Site 3033.
• Other Burials Unknown Soldier interred in section 2, gravesite 274, date of death August 15, 1903.

Eligibility for burial at Danville National Cemetery

Planning ahead for a Veteran's or loved-one's final resting place can eliminate unnecessary delays and reduce stress on a family at a difficult time.

The Department of Veterans Affairs covers the grave plot, opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, a government-furnished headstone or marker, and a U.S. burial flag at no cost to eligible families.

Visiting hours

Visitation Hours: Open daily during daylight hours. Office Hours: Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Closed federal holidays except Memorial Day. VA will continue its practice of honoring special requests for weekend burials for religious purposes, in cases of service members killed in action and on at least one day of any three-day Federal holiday weekend at all open VA national cemeteries.

How to schedule a burial at Danville National Cemetery

1. The funeral home or family contacts the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 1-800-535-1117 (24/7 for active funeral arrangements).
2. Provide the veteran's full name, date of birth, social security number, dates of service, branch, and date of death.
3. Fax or email the DD-214 to the cemetery's interment office for verification.
4. Once eligibility is confirmed (typically 30–60 minutes for complete documentation), the cemetery assigns a date, time, and committal shelter.
5. The funeral home transports the deceased to Danville National Cemetery at the assigned time. The cemetery handles opening, closing, and perpetual care from that point.

Where Danville National Cemetery sits in the Illinois cemetery system

Danville National Cemetery is one of the veteran cemeteries operating in Illinois. The cemetery is currently accepting new in-ground and columbarium interments. Families should verify status before planning.

For families considering alternatives, the nearest veteran cemeteries appear in our cemetery sidebar. If Danville National Cemetery is fully reserved, those alternatives are typically the next options.