The U.S. Veterans Administration recently added 1.9 million records to its online nationwide gravesite locator. These new additions primarily represent records for veterans buried in private cemeteries. The database also carries records on more than 3 million veterans buried in VA national cemeteries since the Civil War and in state veterans cemteries and Arlington National Cemetery since 1999.

To search the Nationwide Gravesite Locator, you only need the last name of the deceased veteran. If the name is a common one, like that of my grandfather, then advanced search options allow you to include additional details such as middle name, cemetery, and birth and death dates. Entering my grandfather's full name -- Walter Henry Thomas -- brings up his record from Arlington National Cemetery. The information included in the Nationwide Gravesite Locator database usually includes the name, birth and death dates, branch of service, rank, burial location within the cemetery, and contact information for the cemetery. It may also include a record of any wartime service.

Veterans with honorable discharge, as well as their spouses and dependent children, are elegible for burial in a VA national cemetery, regardless of where they live.

Related Content:
How to Locate a Cemetery
How to Do a Tombstone Rubbing
Photo Gallery of Tombstone Symbolism
How to Trace Your U.S. Military Ancestors