Kansas Statutes

Chapter 73: Soldiers, Sailors And Patriotic Emblems

Article 3: Burial

Statutes:

• 73-301: Burial of Union soldiers, sailors or marines or their wives or widows.
• 73-302: Same; marking of graves.
• 73-303: Same; payment by county.
• 73-304: Burial of certain veterans, spouses or parents.
• 73-305: Same; payment by county.
• 73-306: Removal of remains of deceased ex-soldiers from abandoned cemetery or pauper burying ground.
• 73-307: Burial of veterans dying while inmates of state charitable institutions, removal of remains.
• 73-308: Same; payment by state.

• 73-301: Burial of Union soldiers, sailors or marines or their wives or widows. It shall be the duty of the county commissioners in each of the counties of this state to designate the township trustee or some other suitable person in each township, whose duty it shall be to cause to be decently interred the body of any honorably discharged Union soldier, sailor or marine who served in the Union army or navy in the war of 1861-'65, known as the "civil war," or the body of the wife or widow of any such soldier, sailor, marine, who may hereafter die without leaving sufficient means to defray his or her funeral expenses. Such burial shall not be made in any cemetery or burial ground or that portion of any burial ground used exclusively for the pauper dead. The expenses of any such burial shall in no case be more than one hundred dollars ($100). If the deceased has relatives or friends who desire to conduct the burial they shall be permitted to do so, but if they are unable to pay the expenses thereof, such expense shall be paid by the county in which the deceased soldier, sailor, marine, his wife, or widow, may die, as hereinbefore provided.

        History:   L. 1885, ch. 184, § 1; L. 1907, ch. 376, § 1; R.S. 1923, 73-301; L. 1927, ch. 284, § 1; June 1.

• 73-302: Same; marking of graves. The grave of any such deceased soldier, sailor or marine shall be marked by a headstone containing the name of deceased, and the organization to which he belonged or in which he served in the Union army or navy: Provided, That such headstone shall not cost more than the sum of twenty dollars, and shall be of such design and material as may be approved by the board of county commissioners.

        History:   L. 1885, ch. 184, § 2; March 14; R.S. 1923, 53-302.

• 73-303: Same; payment by county. The expenses of such burial and headstones shall be paid by the county in which such soldier, sailor or marine resided in the time of his death; and the board of county commissioners of such county is authorized and directed to audit the account and pay the said expenses in a similar manner as other accounts against such county are audited and paid.

        History:   L. 1885, ch. 184, § 3; March 14; R.S. 1923, 73-303.

• 73-304: Burial of certain veterans, spouses or parents. It shall be the duty of the county commissioners in each of the counties of this state to cause to be decently interred the body of any honorably discharged person who served in the armed forces of the United States during the Spanish-American war, the Philippine insurrection, the expedition to China, world war I or world war II, or who served with the armed forces of the United States during the military, naval and air operations in Korea or other places under the flags of the United States and the United Nations or under the flag of the United States alone, or the body of the spouse or parent of any such honorably discharged person, who may hereafter die without leaving sufficient means to defray funeral expenses; or to cause the removal of the body of any member of the armed forces as above defined buried in grounds reserved exclusively for pauper dead to other portions of cemeteries or burial grounds. Such burial shall not be made in any cemetery or burial ground or that portion of the burial ground used exclusively for the burial of pauper dead: Provided, That in case surviving relatives of the deceased shall desire to conduct the funeral, and are unable or unwilling to pay the charges therefor, they shall be permitted to do so, and the expense shall be paid in the amount and manner provided by K.S.A. 39-713(l) of the General Statutes Supplement of 1955 or amendments thereto [*].

        History:   L. 1907, ch. 375, § 1; R.S. 1923, 73-304; L. 1927, ch. 284, § 2; L. 1945, ch. 301, § 5; L. 1951, ch. 429, § 4; L. 1957, ch. 421, § 1; June 29.

• 73-305: Same; payment by county. The expenses for the burial or removal of any soldier, as provided for in K.S.A. 73-304, shall be paid by the county wherein such burial or removal takes place.

        History:   L. 1907, ch. 375, § 2; May 27; R.S. 1923, 73-305.

• 73-306: Removal of remains of deceased ex-soldiers from abandoned cemetery or pauper burying ground. It shall be the duty of the trustees of the several townships of this state, and of the mayors of the cities of the first and second class of this state, to cause to be removed the remains of any deceased ex-soldiers of the civil war of 1861-1865, also ex-soldiers of the Spanish-American war, also members of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Kansas cavalry, which may be buried in any abandoned cemetery, or in any ground set apart for the burial of paupers, in such township or city, from such abandoned cemetery or pauper burying ground to some regularly chartered cemetery, or to some cemetery specially set apart for the burial of deceased ex-soldiers within the same county; and the expense of such removal shall be paid by the county in which such removal is made: Provided, That the expense of such removal shall in no case exceed the sum of twenty-five dollars for each body so removed: And provided further, That no county shall be required to pay the expenses of the removal of any such remains to any place outside of the county in which the same was originally buried.

        History:   L. 1909, ch. 221, § 1; May 29; R.S. 1923, 73-306.

• 73-307: Burial of veterans dying while inmates of state charitable institutions, removal of remains. No ex-soldier of the civil war of 1861-1865, also ex-soldiers of the Spanish-American war, also members of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Kansas cavalry, also honorably discharged persons who served in the armed forces of the United States during world war I, world war II, or during the military, naval and air operations in Korea or other places under the flags of the United States and the United Nations or under the flag of the United States alone, who shall die while an inmate of any of the charitable institutions of this state, unless such ex-soldier shall have so requested in writing and signed by such person or his guardian so requesting, shall be buried in the cemetery of such charitable institution.

        It shall be the duty of the board of charitable institutions [*] of the state of Kansas to cause all ex-service persons of the civil war and of the Spanish-American war, also members of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Kansas cavalry, also honorably discharged persons who served in the armed forces of the United States during world war I, world war II, or during the military, naval and air operations in Korea or other places under the flags of the United States and the United Nations or under the flag of the United States alone, who shall die while an inmate of any charitable institution of the state, to be buried in some regularly chartered cemetery, or in some burying ground specially set apart for the burial of ex-service persons of the civil war and of the Spanish-American war, or any persons who served in the armed forces of the United States during world war I, world war II or during the military, naval and air operations in Korea or other places under the flags of the United States and the United Nations or under the flag of the United States alone.

        It shall further be the duty of said board of administration of the charitable institutions [*] of this state to cause to be removed from the cemeteries of all state charitable institutions under its control the remains of any persons having served in any of the wars in which the United States has been engaged, and also members of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Kansas cavalry, which may be buried therein, to some regularly chartered cemetery, or to some burial ground specially set apart for the burial of all persons having served in any of the wars in which the United States has been engaged, and also members of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Kansas cavalry.

        History:   L. 1909, ch. 221, § 2; R.S. 1923, 73-307; L. 1945, ch. 301, § 6; L. 1951, ch. 429, § 5; June 30.

• 73-308: Same; payment by state. The state director of accounts and reports is hereby authorized to draw his warrants on the treasurer of state for the payment of the necessary expenses incurred in carrying out the provisions of K.S.A. 73-307, upon duly verified vouchers approved by the said board of administration of charitable institutions [*] of the state of Kansas.

        History:   L. 1909, ch. 221, § 3; May 29; R.S. 1923, 73-308.