National Cemetery Administration
Dates of Establishment: National Cemeteries & NCA Burial Sites (6 of 6)
Although the U.S. Army maintained cemetery records in the nineteenth century, it can be challenging to determine dates of establishment along with first and oldest burials. At some locations, the earliest date of the death substantially predates the year the cemetery was established — often this is due to the relocation of remains from other cemeteries when the Army closed military installations. The date a national cemetery was established may correspond to earliest date of death (military or civilian), when the government legally acquired the land, or when a government official authorized or designated the grounds as a national cemetery. In locations where there was room in private cemeteries, the military may have buried its dead in plots designated as soldiers' lots, regardless of service branches interred.
6. Enemy Prisoners of War
As the result of wars at home and abroad, the U.S. Army held prisoners in camps in the United States. In keeping with the laws of war (set out in the Hague Conventions 1899–1907, Geneva Conventions of 1949, Additional Protocols of 1977, and customary international law), deceased POWs were buried near their place of internment. Unless the family or country claimed the remains, these graves remain the responsibility of the federal government. The Civil War resulted in seven all-Confederate cemeteries, plus graves in thirty-two national cemeteries or soldiers' lots associated with an estimated 12,000 remains. During World War I and II, more than 400,000 foreign service members were interned on U.S. soil. More than a thousand POWs who died in captivity—mostly German, Italian, and Japanese—are buried in twenty-three NCA national cemeteries or post cemeteries.
Civil War Confederate Cemeteries, Plots, and Monuments
| Name | Location | Est. |
|---|---|---|
| Confederate Stockade Cemetery | Sandusky, OH | 1862 |
| Rock Island Confederate Cemetery | Rock Island, IL | 1863 |
| Oak Woods Cemetery Confederate Mound | Chicago, IL | 1866 |
| Remark for Oak Woods Cemetery Confederate Mound: Date indicates when remains were moved to current location—dates of death are 1861–1865. | ||
| North Alton Confederate Cemetery | Alton, IL | 1867 |
| Remark for North Alton Confederate Cemetery: Date indicates when remains were moved to current location—dates of death are 1861–1865. | ||
| Camp Chase Confederate Cemetery | Columbus, OH | 1879 |
| Remark for Camp Chase Confederate Cemetery: The cemetery was maintained by the state prior to 1879 when the federal government assumed ownership. | ||
| Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery | St. Mary's County, MD | 1910 |
| Remark for Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery: Remains of Confederate POWs were moved here in 1874 by the State of Maryland; the state deeded the site to the federal government in 1910. | ||
| Union Confederate Monument Site | Kansas City, MO | 1911 |
| Remark for Union Confederate Monument Site: Confederate POWs were interred in these private cemeteries but over time the grave locations were lost. The federal government erected a single memorial monument to recognize their deaths. | ||
| Woodlawn Confederate Monument Site | Terre Haute, IN | 1912 |
| Remark for Woodlawn Confederate Monument Site: Confederate POWs were interred in these private cemeteries but over time the grave locations were lost. The federal government erected a single memorial monument to recognize their deaths. | ||
| Crown Hill Confederate Plot | Indianapolis, IN | 1931 |
| Remark for Crown Hill Confederate Plot: Date indicates when remains were moved to current location—dates of death are 1861–1865. | ||
World War II
| Name | Location | Est. |
|---|---|---|
| Fort McClellan EPW Cemetery | Anniston, AL | 1943 |
| Remark for Fort McClellan EPW Cemetery: 1 of 11 cemeteries transferred from the Army to NCA in 2019–2020 per Exec. Order No. 13781, 2017. | ||
