The Keokuk Veterans’ Memorial, located at the entrance of Oakland Cemetery, is a monument dedicated to all citizens of Keokuk who served in the United States military. It depicts the names of over 1,800 local veterans, along with their branch of service. Stars located next to names denote those who were killed in action. The memorial is designed to reflect a previous city monument honoring Keokuk veterans, the Hotel Keokuk Veranda Arch Civil War Memorial. This memorial was deconstructed for the building of the Mississippi River highway bridge.

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The groundbreaking ceremony for the memorial took place in July of 2004, and the project was completed in 2005. The effort of building the memorial was made by a wide array of citizens and organizations. Retired Keokuk police chief Jerry Morgan and then-mayor David Gudgel were among the community leaders that organized the project. Leyda, Burrus, & Metz Monuments, of Burlington, Iowa, were hired to design the featured art. Hickey Construction, of Keokuk, designed the foundation and sidewalks at cost. Kent Peters, a local paralyzed veteran, volunteered to do all of the computer work, and made all of the necessary forms and documents. American Legion captain and local Veterans’ advocate George Morgan recalls good turn-outs to all organizational meetings and work days, which was vital in completing this project.

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The Keokuk Veterans’ Memorial today is maintained and operated by the Keokuk Veterans’ Memorial Commission, and the names of Keokuk citizens who served our country continue to be added to the memorial. Information is provided below for those interesting in having a Keokuk Veteran’s name added to the monument.