National Cemetery Administration

Cemetery Hours: Open daily during daylight hours.

New interments at the cemetery will be limited to in-ground burial of cremated remains. Casketed burials will be permitted as subsequent interments in existing gravesites for eligible family members. For those Veterans and families in the area who desire casketed interment or inurnment in a columbarium, the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, Illinois, remains the Chicago area's full-service national cemetery.

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.

» Eligibility for Burial in a VA National 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.

Fort Sheridan National Cemetery was transferred to NCA by the Department of the Army in December 2019. Fort Sheridan served as an active Army post from 1887 to 1993. The cemetery, which was established in 1889, contains 2,354 occupied gravesites. The cemetery is administered by the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, Illinois.

For educational materials and additional information on this cemetery, please visit the Education section, located below.

Cemetery policies are conspicuously posted and readily visible to the public.

Three floral arrangements accompanying the casket or urn at the time of burial will be placed on the completed grave.

Fresh cut flowers may be placed on graves at any time of the year. They will be removed when they become unsightly or when it becomes necessary to facilitate cemetery operations such as mowing.

Artificial flowers will be permitted on graves during the period of Oct. 1 through April 1, and will be removed as soon as they become unsightly. Holiday wreaths or blankets are permitted on graves during the holiday season beginning December 1st. All Holiday decorations will be removed on Martin Luther King Day.

Permanent plantings, statues, vigil lights, breakable objects and similar items are not permitted on the graves. The Department of Veterans Affairs does not permit adornments that are considered offensive, inconsistent with the dignity of the cemetery or considered hazardous to cemetery personnel. For example, items incorporating beads or wires may become entangled in mowers or other equipment and cause injury.

No items such as stickers or balloons may be attached to a headstone or marker at any time.

Permanent items removed from graves will be placed in an inconspicuous holding area for 30 days prior to disposal. If not retrieved by donor, they are then governed by the rules for disposal of federal property.

Please exercise caution if placing personal, sentimental or valuable items on gravesites. Fort Sheridan National Cemetery is not responsible for any items placed on gravesites and cannot replace or reimburse items that have been damaged, lost or stolen. All items placed on gravesites become the property of the United States Government.

The Fort Sheridan National Cemetery was established in 1889, two years after Fort Sheridan was officially founded. The cemetery has interred in its grounds Veterans from the civil war up to more recent conflicts. Interments also include World War II era German POW's who were held at both Fort Sheridan and nearby Camp Grant.