Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia, is an American military cemetery established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Robert E. Lee's home. It is situated directly across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., next to the present day location of The Pentagon, and is served by the Arlington Cemetery station on the Blue Line of the Washington Metro system.

Burial procedures

The flags in Arlington National Cemetery are flown at half-staff from a half hour before the first funeral until a half hour after the last funeral each day. Funerals are normally conducted five days a week, excluding weekends.

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Funerals, including interments and inurnments, average well over 20 a day. The Cemetery conducts approximately 5,400 burials each year. http://www.arlingtoncemetery.org/funeral_information/guide.pih.html

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With more than 260,000 people buried there, Arlington National Cemetery has the second-largest number of people buried of any national cemetery in the United States. The largest of the 130 national cemeteries is the Calverton National Cemetery, on Long Island, near Riverhead, New York, which conducts more than 7,000 burials each year.

Related Topics:
Calverton National Cemetery - Long Island - Riverhead, New York

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In addition to in-ground burial, Arlington National Cemetery also has one of the larger columbariums for cremated remains in the country. Four courts are currently in use, each with 5,000 niches.

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When construction is complete, there will be nine courts with a total of 50,000 niches; capacity for 100,000 remains. Any honorably discharged veteran is eligible for inurnment in the columbarium.

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