Arlington National Cemetery

Because in their hearts God had planted the seed
Of pity for women, and help for its needs;
They saw, in high purpose, a duty to do,
And the armor of right broke the barriers through.
Uninvited, unaided, unsanctioned ofttimes
With pass, or without it, they pressed on the lines
They would bind on their “brassards” and march to the fray.
And the man liveth not who could say them nay;
They would stand with you now, as they stood with you then
The nurses, consolers, and saviours of men.
Clara Barton Poem

Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, serves as a cemetery and a memorial to America’s war heroes. More than four million people visit Arlington each year, attending graveside services and special ceremonies to pay tribute to veterans and historical figures.

More than 400,000 American servicemen as well as many famous Americans are buried at the 624 acre national cemetery. Among the notable Americans buried here are Presidents William Howard Taft and John F. Kennedy, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and Robert Kennedy. More than four million people visit the cemetery each year and approximately 27-30 graveside funerals are held here each day.

Special memorial services are held in the Arlington National Amphitheater on Easter, Memorial Day and Veterans Day and are sponsored by the U.S. Army Military District of Washington. Many military organizations conduct other annual memorial services throughout the year.

The main entrance, also known as the Memorial Gate, was recently modified to house the Women in Military Service for America Memorial. The Visitors Center is located here and is a resource for maps and guidebooks.

The Tomb of the Unknowns, also known as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier stands on a hill overlooking Washington, DC. The tomb was dedicated in 1921 and contains the remains of soldiers from WWI, WWII, Korea and Vietnam. The tomb is guarded 24 hours a day and each hour there is a changing of the guard ceremony with a special march and salute.

Arlington House, the former home of Robert E. Lee and his family is located atop a hill, providing one of the best views of Washington, DC. George Washington Parke Custis, Lee’s father-in-law, originally built the house as his own home as well as a memorial to George Washington, his step-grandfather. Arlington House is now preserved as a memorial to Robert E. Lee who helped heal the nation following the Civil War.

In 2013, Arlington National Cemetery unveiled the first major upgrade to the historical displays in over 20 years. The new Welcome Center presents information on Arlington’s annual rituals and military tradition that honor our veterans, help visitors remember the key historical events and encourage guests to explore the 624 acres of this national shrine. The upgrade involves six new panel displays that include a cemetery overview, the history of the Arlington House estate, a Freedman’s Village history, the evolution of becoming the national cemetery depicted in a vertical glass panel, a retrospect of the JFK procession and a ritual panel outlining how the military performs funerals. The cornerstone of the new exhibit, is a life-size a statue of a bugler. Staff Sgt. Jesse Tubb, who is a bugler in U.S. Army Band, “Pershing’s Own,” served as the model for the statue.

Arlington National Cemetery is the final resting place for more than 360 recipients of the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military decoration, given for “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.”