Glendale National Cemetery
![NCA marks 50 years (1973-2023) of serving America's Veterans, service members, and families.](/CEM/images/50-years/NCA-50-Logo.jpg)
NCA marks 50 years (1973-2023) of serving America's Veterans, Service Members, and Families.
Learn more and watch NCA's 50th Anniversary Ceremony.
![Superintendant's lodge at Glendale National Cemetery. Superintendant's lodge at Glendale National Cemetery.](/CEM/images/cemphotos/848_Glendale.jpg)
Visitation Hours: Open daily from sunrise to sunset.
Office Hours: Monday thru Friday 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Closed federal holidays except Memorial Day and Veterans Day.
Glendale National Cemetery is closed to new interments. The only interments that are being accepted are subsequent interments for veterans or eligible family members in an existing gravesite. Periodically however, burial space may become available due to a canceled reservation or when a disinterment has been completed. When either of these two scenarios occurs, the gravesite is made available to another eligible veteran on a first-come, first-served basis. Since there is no way to know in advance when a gravesite may become available, please contact the cemetery at the time of need to inquire whether space is available.
Burial in a national cemetery is open to all members of the armed forces who have met a minimum active duty service requirement and were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable.
A Veteran's spouse, widow or widower, minor dependent children, and under certain conditions, unmarried adult children with disabilities may also be eligible for burial. Eligible spouses and children may be buried even if they predecease the Veteran.
Members of the reserve components of the armed forces who die while on active duty or who die while on training duty, or were eligible for retired pay, may also be eligible for burial.
Situated 13 miles southeast of Richmond, VA, at 8301 Willis Church Road, Richmond, VA 23231. The cemetery is located 3.7 miles from the junction of State Highways 5 and 156. It is also three miles from the point of intersection of Darbytown Road and Charles City Road. Cemetery directional signs at both points. Richmond International Airport is located approximately four miles east of Richmond city limits, off U.S. Route 60. Travel west on Route 60 to Laburnum Avenue. Travel Laburnum Avenue south to Darbytown Road. Take east on Darbytown Road, eight miles to Route 156 and Willis Church Road. Travel three miles on Route 156 to cemetery.
Fax all discharge documentation to the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 1-866-900-6417 and follow-up with a phone call to 1-800-535-1117.
For information on scheduled burials in our national cemeteries, please go to the Daily Burial Schedule.
Cemetery Contact Information
Hampton National Cemetery manages this cemetery. Staff is available at Ft. Harrison National Cemetery for local assistance and can be reached at 804-795-2031. Otherwise, you may also contact Hampton National Cemetery at:
Phone: 757-723-7104
Fax: 757-723-0027
Military Funeral Honors
U.S. Air Force: 800-325-4986
U.S. Army: 804-734-6606
U.S. Coast Guard: 757-398-6390
U.S. Marine Corps: 866-826-3628
U.S. Navy: 866-203-7791
For educational materials and additional information on this cemetery, please visit the Education section, located below.
Our cemetery floral regulations exist only to reflect the honor and respect we hold for our Nation's Veterans, by preserving the dignity and solemnity of their final resting place.
Fresh cut flowers may be placed at gravesites at any time using cemetery-supplied floral vases. The vases may be found in a bin at the front of the cemetery next to the trash receptacle.
Floral items will be removed from gravesites when they become faded or unsightly, for mowing and maintenance, or if damaged by weather or wildlife. Due to the open nature of the grounds, we cannot guarantee against theft, vandalism, or the effects of nature.
Artificial floral arrangements may be placed on gravesites starting November 1st through April 1st. Potted plants may only be placed on gravesites for a period extending 7 days before through 7 days after Easter Sunday.
Seasonal items such as Christmas wreaths (18" or smaller), grave floral blankets (not to exceed 2'x3') and potted poinsettias may be placed on gravesites beginning December 1st through January 10th. These items will be removed by January 20th.
Please do not secure floral items or other types of decorations to headstones or markers.
A maximum of two U.S. flags may be placed on gravesites. Flags will be removed and properly disposed of when they are damaged, faded, tattered or otherwise unserviceable.
The following items are prohibited for placement at a gravesite, columbarium, or memorial wall and are subject to removal by cemetery staff:
- Alcoholic products
- Balloons, pinwheels, wind chimes, lights, candles, statues, stuffed animals, or other similar items
- Decorative and breakable glass or plastic items
- Non-government supplied floral containers (pots, planters, vases, etc.)
- Any objects that could become projectiles when caught in grounds maintenance equipment (such as rocks, coins, or other small durable objects)
- Offensive items or those deemed inconsistent with the cemetery setting
- Permanent in-ground plantings
- Weapons of any kind, explosives, or ammunition
- Any object attached to headstones, markers, or niche covers
These rules are covered by the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations 38 C.F.R. §1.218. All items placed on gravesites become the property of the US Government and will be disposed of under federal regulations.
VA regulations 38 CFR 1.218 prohibit the carrying of firearms (either openly or concealed), explosives or other dangerous or deadly weapons while on VA property, except for official purposes, such as military funeral honors.
Possession of firearms on any property under the charge and control of VA is prohibited. Offenders may be subject to a fine, removal from the premises, or arrest.
Glendale National Cemetery is located in Henrico County, VA, approximately 13 miles southeast of Richmond.
Glendale National Cemetery was established May 7, 1866, on land purchased from a local resident, Lucy C. Nelson. The cemetery name is taken from the farm located on this property, which served as a Union headquarters during the Civil War. Original interments were the remains of Union soldiers recovered from Malvern Hill, Frayer's Farm, Harrison's Landing and other areas in the vicinity. An inspector's report of July 26, 1871, notes a total of 1,189 interments, including 236 known and 953 unknown gravesites. The cemetery is composed of a nearly square plan, with the graves laid out in picturesque, concentric rows.
Glendale National Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.
Monuments and Memorials
There are no monuments or memorials located at Glendale National Cemetery.
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action against an enemy force that can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the Armed Services of the United States. Recipients receive the Medal of Honor from the President on behalf of Congress. It was first awarded during the Civil War and the eligibility criteria, medal design, and recognition on a recipients' grave marker have all evolved over time. There are 390 Medal of Honor recipients interred in VA national cemeteries.
» Medal of Honor recipients buried or memorialized here:
Corporal Michael Fleming Folland (Vietnam). He received the Medal of Honor posthumously for service in the U.S. Army, 3rd Infantry, 199th Infantry Brigade, in recognition of heroism during a reconnaissance mission at Long Khanh Province, Republic of Vietnam, July 3, 1969. Folland is buried in Section H, Site 846.
The National Cemetery Administration, working in collaboration with the National Park Service's Richmond National Battlefield Park, has developed a walking tour for Glendale National Cemetery highlighting select servicemembers interred here:
More than half of VA's national cemeteries originated with the Civil War and many are closed to some burials. Other sites were established to serve World War veterans and they continue to expand. Historic themes related with NCA's cemeteries and soldiers' lots vary, but visitors should understand "Why is it here?" NCA began by installing interpretive signs, or waysides, at more than 100 properties to observe the Civil War Sesquicentennial (2011–2015). Please follow the links below to see the interpretive signs for Glendale National Cemetery.
Visit the Veterans Legacy Program and NCA History Program for additional information. Thank you for your interest.