Honoring Our Deceased Military Ancestors for Memorial Day: National Cemeteries and Monuments

On this day of remembrance, we’d like to acquaint you with a government entity that you may not be aware of but which holds burial information on thousands of our military ancestors. The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC), located in Arlington, Virginia, “maintains twenty-six permanent American military cemeteries, thirty-one federal memorials, monuments, and markers in seventeen foreign countries.” A total of more than 200,000 deceased service members are honored at ABMC sites, and you can visit in person or search on the website to see what information may be available for your ancestors.

Most of the cemeteries under the jurisdiction of the ABMC are for recent wars: World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the war in Vietnam. However, there are a few from the Mexican War and other conflicts. Not just soldiers but American civilians assisting the military, Red Cross workers, and even some entertainers who served the military are interred in these cemeteries, and some of the sites are memorials to unknown victims and those lost at sea.

The history of the commission is detailed on a page that you may want to read before you search to learn the details of what is available. Keep in mind that soldiers buried overseas but then sent home to be reinterred will not be recorded on this site. Also, even though the site says there are monuments to those missing in action, a search for three men from University City who were killed and declared MIA during World War I and II yielded no results, so not everyone who died seems to be included.

The "Cemeteries and Memorials" page links to pages for each location with photographs, descriptions, a bit of history, and information on visiting, maps, and directions. Some of the pages have additional news articles, featured events, and downloadable memorial brochures.

You can search the burials from most pages on the website, although there is also a dedicated search page with a simple search box. You might want to click the "more burial search options," however, for a much broader search experience. Here, as shown below, you can narrow down to a specific conflict, country, state, or service, plus the National Archives and the Veterans Legacy Memorial. Clicking on the “Advanced” button at the top of that page gives you the ability to further narrow your search.

A simple search for the surname “Wallach” resulted in two men from Missouri. Clicking on the name of one of them brought up a screen with many details, including medals won by the man, in which cemetery or memorial he is located, where and when he was killed, and other pertinent information. A lovely feature for each person is a memorial certificate, which can be downloaded and printed. If you do choose to print, be sure to read the “Printing Tips,” which contain detailed instructions for best quality for both PC and Mac users and different browsers.

Even if you are not successful in locating an ancestor on this website, you may want to see the heartwarming way in which our servicemen and women are being honored for their patriotism and sacrifice and remember them as the holiday weekend draws to a close. After all, that’s what Memorial Day is for!