In response to the desire of Missouri Veterans to be buried in a military cemetery, the Missouri Veterans Commission and the National Cemetery Administration established a State Veterans Cemetery at Jacksonville to serve the Veterans of Northeast Missouri. The first interment services were held at the Jacksonville facility on November 3, 2003. The cemetery is situated on 117.4 softly contoured acres which includes a 10 acre lake. Within this extremely attractive location, 59 manicured acres represent the first development phase of the cemetery. This area encompasses an administration building, maintenance facility, committal shelter for interment services, columbarium wall for placement of cremations, lake with floating fountain, and a walking path with a bridge spanning the lake. The tranquility of this magnificent setting is further enhanced by a carillon tower which plays a different hymn each hour. The developed portion of the cemetery has approximately 40,000 burial sites along with the Columbarium that has 800 niches for cremations.