Attention A T users. To access the menus on this page please perform the following steps. 1. Please switch auto forms mode to off. 2. Hit enter to expand a main menu option (Health, Benefits, etc). 3. To enter and activate the submenu links, hit the down arrow. You will now be able to tab or arrow up or down through the submenu options to access/activate the submenu links.

National Cemetery Administration

 

Remembrance: POW/MIA Veterans at St. Albans National Cemetery

Photo of U.S. and POW/MIA flags flying near a columbarium at St. Albans National Cemetery in New York. U.S. and POW/MIA flags flying near a columbarium at St. Albans National Cemetery in New York.

In 1979, families of missing servicemembers pressed for full accountability. Congress and the President then proclaimed the first National POW/MIA Recognition Day, which falls on the third Friday of September, this year on September 18, 2026, to acknowledge the families' concerns and symbolize the steadfast resolve of the American people to never forget the men and women who gave up their freedom protecting ours.

According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), approximately 80,000 Americans remain missing from WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf Wars, and other conflicts. There are still over 1,500 "Unaccounted For" servicemembers from the Vietnam War period.

St. Albans National Cemetery, in New York, held a ceremony on National POW/MIA Recognition Day in 2025 to honor its 21 "Unaccounted For" Vietnam War Veterans. NCA invites you to remember these 21 POW/MIA Veterans by visiting their memorial pages to celebrate the legacy, military service, and sacrifice to our nation of these heroes. You can post tributes, upload images, and share biographical information or historical documents.


Unaccounted For Vietnam Veterans

"IN MEMORY OF"

If your Veteran is a Prisoner of War (POW) or Missing in Action (MIA), you may be eligible to apply for a memorial marker inscribed with "IN MEMORY OF" as part of your Veteran's burial and memorial benefits. The type of headstone, marker, or niche that is possible depends on those the cemetery uses. For example, St. Albans National Cemetery only has niche markers available. National cemeteries may also have a memorial section or a memorial wall.

Learn more about burial and memorial benefits »

return to top go