United States Department of Veterans Affairs
United States Department of Veterans Affairs

Burial & Memorials

New National Cemeteries


The Veterans Millennium Health Care and Benefits Act of 1999 requires VA to establish six additional national cemeteries in areas of the United States in which the need for burial space is greatest. Those areas are: Atlanta, Georgia; Detroit, Michigan; Miami, Florida; Sacramento, California; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Fort Sill National Cemetery near Oklahoma City opened for interments in 2001, the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies near Pittsburgh, Pa. and the Great Lakes National Cemetery near Detroit opened in 2005, the Georgia National Cemetery, and the Sacramento Valley VA National Cemetery opened in 2006, the South Florida VA National Cemetery near Miami, opened in 2007.


The National Cemetery Act of 2003 authorizes VA to establish new national cemeteries to serve veterans in the areas of Bakersfield, Calif.; Birmingham, Ala.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Sarasota County, Fla.; southeastern Pennsylvania; and Columbia-Greenville, S.C. All six areas have veteran populations exceeding 170,000, which is the threshold VA has established for new national cemeteries.


Reports to Congress on the Establishment of Additional National Cemeteries:


May 2008 Report  May 2008 Report


May 2007 Report  May 2007 Report


May 2006 Report  May 2006 Report


Alabama National Cemetery  Alabama National Cemetery

Bakersfield National Cemetery  Bakersfield National Cemetery

Ft. Jackson National Cemetery  Ft. Jackson National Cemetery

Jacksonville National Cemetery  Jacksonville National Cemetery

Sarasota National Cemetery  Sarasota National Cemetery

Washington Crossing National Cemetery  Washington Crossing National Cemetery