Thread by @ArlingtonNatl

Good morning from Arlington National Cemetery!

Today at 3 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time we will officially dedicate our #Millennium expansion, unveil two new streets and conduct funerals for two Unknown #CivilWar Union Soldiers.

(@USArmy photos by Mary Smith)

We will be streaming the ceremony #live and will share the feed here on @Twitter and @Facebook.

Following a history of the project and unveiling of two new street signs, we will conduct the first ground burial of two Civil War Soldiers discovered at @ManassasNPS.

The Soldiers will be laid to rest in Section 81 with military funeral honors with funeral escort.

#HonorThem

The 27-acre #Millennium expansion provides 27,282 interment spaces that are located either above or below ground. It helps extend the life of the cemetery for approximately a decade.

At our current rate of interments, the cemetery will be full by the early 2040s.

The street dedications are in honor of @USMC Gunnery Sgt. Jonathan W. Gifford, and Ida Lewis, U.S. Lighthouse Service, which was later absorbed into the @USCG.

Gunnery Sgt. Jonathan W. Gifford is the first U.S. #Marine honored with a street name in the cemetery and Ida Lewis is the first female and first representative of the U.S. #CoastGuard honored with a street name.

The new streets are Lewis Drive and Gifford Drive.