U.S._National_Cemetery

United States National Cemetery System

United States National Cemetery System

Cemeteries for veterans in the United States

The United States National Cemetery System is a system of 164 cemeteries in the United States and its territories. The authority to create military burial places came during the American Civil War, in an act passed by the U.S. Congress on July 17, 1862.[1] By the end of 1862, 12 national cemeteries had been established.[2] Two of the nation's most iconic military cemeteries, Arlington National Cemetery and Gettysburg National Cemetery were established in 1864 and 1863, respectively.

A plaque at Chattanooga National Cemetery that explains the history of the National Cemetery System
Gettysburg National Cemetery, Pennsylvania
Golden Gate National Cemetery, California
Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia
Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minnesota
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Hawaii
Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery. Memorial Day 2010
Gravesites at Fort Logan National Cemetery during Memorial Day 2006
Flags flying at Fort Logan National Cemetery during Memorial Day 2006. The cemetery has flat markers, a practice which is used extensively in the new fields at this cemetery.
National Cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee
Creation of national cemeteries

National Cemetery Administration

The National Cemetery Administration of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) maintains 148 national cemeteries as well as the Nationwide Gravesite Locator, which can be used to find burial locations of American military veterans through their searchable website.[3][4] The Department of the Army maintains two national cemeteries, Arlington National Cemetery and United States Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery.[5] The National Park Service (NPS) maintains 14 national cemeteries associated with historic sites and battlefields.[6]

The American Battle Monuments Commission, an independent agency, maintains 26 American military cemeteries and other memorials outside the United States.

History

12 national cemeteries were established in 1862. A total of 34 were established during the Civil War from 1861-1865. Additional cemeteries were set up after the United States Civil War by Edmund Burke Whitman.[7] Congress passed additional laws to establish and protect national cemeteries in 1867.[8] The National Cemetery Administration lists a total of 73 Civil War-Era National Cemeteries from 1861-1868.[9]

Final military honors are provided for qualified veterans by volunteer veteran or National Guard details known as Memorial Honor Details (MHD), upon application by family members through their choice of mortuary handling the deceased.

List of United States national cemeteries

*Please note that the year listed is the official date of establishment listed by the VA. This may differ from the year of the first burial, the oldest remains, the year the land was acquired, etc. Many post cemeteries have been given national cemetery status as late as 2020, which is consideribly later than the original cemetery. For example Vancouver Barracks post cemetery was established in 1849 and became a national cemetery in 2020--one of 11 cemeteries transferred from the Army to NCA in 2019–2020 per Exec. Order No. 13781, 2017.[10]

More information Cemetery, City ...

See also

Notes and references

  1. [1]
    "A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774–1875". memory.loc.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-13.
  2. [2]
    Administration, National Cemetery. "Dates of Establishment: National Cemeteries & NCA Burial Sites (1 of 6) - National Cemetery Administration". www.cem.va.gov. Retrieved 2022-09-25.
  3. [3]
    "Nationwide Gravesite Locator". National Cemetery Administration.
  4. [4]
    Administration, National Cemetery. "National Cemetery Listing – National Cemetery Administration". www.cem.va.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  5. [5]
    "Office of Army Cemeteries > Cemeteries". armycemeteries.army.mil. Retrieved 2020-12-13.
  6. [6]
    Address, Mailing; Road, ersonville National Cemetery National Prisoner of War Museum 496 Cemetery; ersonville; Us, GA 31711 Phone: 229 924-0343 Contact. "National Parks & National Cemeteries - Andersonville National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2022-09-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. [7]
    "Edmund Whitman (1812–1873)". University of Michigan. Retrieved 2008-10-31.
  8. [8]
    Chap. LXI. 14 Stat. 399 from "A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U. S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774–1875". Library of Congress, Law Library of Congress. Retrieved April 25, 2012.
  9. [9]
    Administration, National Cemetery. "VA.gov | Veterans Affairs". www.cem.va.gov. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  10. [10]
    Administration, National Cemetery. "VA.gov | Veterans Affairs". www.cem.va.gov. Retrieved 2024-04-01.

Further reading

  • Bontrager, Shannon. Death at the Edges of Empire: Fallen Soldiers, Cultural Memory, and the Making of an American Nation, 1863–1921 (University of Nebraska Press, 2020); memories of American war dead. online summary by author
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