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Georgia National Cemetery burial schedule and eligibility

Canton, Georgia · VA national cemetery

Address, hours, directions and contact details: Georgia National Cemetery.

VeteranFunerals Editorial·6 min read·May 1, 2026·Facts checked

You can look up burials at Georgia National Cemetery on VA's daily burial schedule, which lists the committal services families have agreed to publish. Veterans who were not dishonorably discharged can be buried here, and so can their spouses and some dependent children. To schedule a burial, you or the funeral director call VA's National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117.

History of Georgia National Cemetery

Georgia National Cemetery is the second national cemetery in Georgia and the 123rd in the national cemetery system. A private citizen donated the 775-acre site to the National Cemetery Administration in 2001. At maximum capacity, 330 acres of the site will be developed for burials; the remainder of the site is too steep to be used for interments. Historically, the site was used for logging purposes and as a hunting ground for local residents.

Georgia National Cemetery is located near the site of the Etowah burial mounds, created by American Indians of the Mississippian culture between AD 1000–1550. This site is one of the largest American Indian burial mounds in North America. Archaeological investigations have been conducted on Etowah mounds for over one hundred years.

Georgia National Cemetery opened for burials in 2006, and was formally dedicated on June 4 of that year.

Notable veterans buried at Georgia National Cemetery

The National Cemetery Administration lists these people of note at Georgia National Cemetery, with section and site where it has them.

  • Joseph "Max" Cleland (1942–2021) was born in Atlanta, Georgia on August 24, 1942. He was an outstanding student athlete who was drawn to public service. He earned a B.A. from Stetson university and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army through its ROTC program. He earned an M.A. in history from Emory University. Cleland volunteered for service during the height of the Vietnam War in 1967. He lost both legs and his right arm when a grenade detonated beside him during a mission near Khe Sanh in April 1968. Cleland overcame his physical and mental wounds. He was elected as the youngest member of the Georgia senate in 1970 at age 34. President Jimmy Carter appointed him to head the Veterans Administration in 1977. Addressing Veteran's mental health was a key focus of his tenure. Cleland became Georgia's Secretary of State in 1982 and held that office for 12 years. He was elected to the U.S. Senate (Ga.-D) in 1996 and served one term. He was appointed to the 9-11 Commission in 2002. In 2009 President Barack Obama appointed him Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission. He was appointed Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Arlington National Cemetery in 2010. Cleland's career was devoted to Veterans issues and honoring their memory. He was instrumental in bringing Georgia National Cemetery to the state after Marietta closed to burials in the 1970s. He died November 9 and is interred in Section 6, Site 132, beside his father (a WWII Navy veteran) and mother.
  • PFC Hood E. Cole (World War II). Cole (1925–1945) was from Atlanta, GA, and served with Company L, 3rd Battalion, 276th Infantry Regiment, 70th Infantry Division during World War II. On January 14, 1945, Cole's unit was attacked by German forces near Baerenthal, France. At some point during the fighting, Cole was killed, and due to the fighting, his body was unable to be immediately recovered. He was accounted for by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency on February 22, 2023 and now rests in Section 9, Site 792.
  • Isabelle Daniels Holston (Olympic Athlete). Isabelle (1937–2017) was a sprinter, Olympian, educator, and coach. She grew up in Georgia and was a natural athlete, becoming a local track star before graduating from high school. Daniels distinguished herself at Tennessee State University and competed in the 1955 Pan American Games, winning a silver medal. She participated in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, where she won the bronze medal in the 4 × 100 meters relay. She later became a P.E. teacher and coach, where she received numerous accolades, including National Coach of the Year in 1990. She was also inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame and the Hall of Fame of the Bob Hayes Invitational Track Meet in Jacksonville, Florida. She was married to Army veteran Rev. Sidney R. Holston, with whom she had four children. She passed away at the age of 80 and now rests in Section 11, Site 1285.
  • Lonnie C. King, Jr. (1936–2019) was born in Georgia and spent his childhood with his grandfather, who was a sharecropper, circuit preacher, and member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. King then went to Atlanta and lived among the city's black institutions, such as Ebenezer Baptist, where Martin Luther King Sr. was the pastor, and the Butler Street YMCA. He served in the U.S. Navy, 1954–1957, and afterward returned to Atlanta and graduated from Morehouse College. By 1960 he was leading peaceful demonstrations and organizing sit-ins in local restaurants to end segregation in the city. He was a force behind the March 9, 1960, "Appeal for Human Rights," and remained a civil rights advocate throughout his life. King died March 5 and is buried in Georgia National Cemetery, Section 2, Site 1755.
  • CPL Anthony Konze (Korean War.) Konze (1930–1950) was from Brooklyn, NY, and served with Company C, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division during the Korean War. He was reported missing in action on September 1 in the vicinity of Changyong in the Republic of Korea and a finding of death was issued for him on May 7, 1954. He was accounted for by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency on December 18, 2024 and his remains are interred in Section 9, Site 512.
  • LCPL Squire K. Wells (Persian Gulf). "Skip" Wells (1994–2015), the son of a Marine, was from Marietta, GA, and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 2014. According to family and friends, he had a love of flag football and U.S. history and dreamed of becoming a drill sergeant someday. Wells was assigned to M Battery, 5th Battalion, 14th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Marine Forces Reserve in Chattanooga, TN, and was one of five servicemembers killed during an act of domestic terrorism on July 16, 2015. He rests in Section 2, Site 2541.

Visiting hours at Georgia National Cemetery

Visitation Hours: Open daily from sunrise to sunset. Office Hours: Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Closed federal holidays. VA will continue its practice of honoring special requests for weekend burials for religious purposes, in cases of service members killed in action and on at least one day of any three-day Federal holiday weekend at all open VA national cemeteries.

Who can be buried at Georgia National Cemetery?

VA national cemeteries accept a veteran who didn't receive a dishonorable discharge, a service member who died on active duty or in training, the veteran's spouse or surviving spouse (even if they remarried), and minor or, in some cases, unmarried adult dependent children. National Guard and Reserve members qualify under narrower rules. You can ask VA for a pre-need eligibility decision in advance; it does not reserve a gravesite.

What does burial here include at no cost?

  • A gravesite in any VA national cemetery with available space
  • Opening and closing of the grave
  • A government-provided burial liner
  • A government-provided headstone or marker
  • Perpetual care of the gravesite

Veterans also receive a burial flag, a Presidential Memorial Certificate (presented to the next of kin at the burial) and military funeral honors, which include the playing of Taps and two uniformed service members who present the flag. The committal service is held at a committal shelter, not at the grave, and lasts about 20 minutes. National cemeteries have no viewing facilities, so the funeral itself is held elsewhere.

How do you schedule a burial at Georgia National Cemetery?

  1. Gather the veteran's DD214 or other discharge papers, and the deceased's details (Social Security number, dates of birth and death, relationship to the veteran).
  2. Fax the discharge papers to the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 866-900-6417, or email them to [email protected] with the deceased's name in the subject line.
  3. You or the funeral director call 800-535-1117 (Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET) to request Georgia National Cemetery and a date. National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.

Where is the Georgia National Cemetery burial schedule?

VA posts a daily burial schedule for every national cemetery. Search it for Georgia National Cemetery to see the committal services planned there. It only lists burials whose families agreed to publish them. To change or cancel a burial that's already scheduled, contact Georgia National Cemetery directly at 770-479-9300.

Headstone, flag and burial allowance

  • Government headstone or marker: tell the scheduling office which headstone, marker, niche cover or medallion you want when you schedule the burial.
  • Burial flag: VA Form 27-2008.
  • Burial allowance: For a non-service-connected death on or after October 1, 2026, VA pays up to $1,032 toward burial and funeral costs and $1,032 for a plot; for a service-connected death on or after September 11, 2001, the burial allowance is up to $2,000. Claim it with VA Form 21P-530EZ. All benefits

After the funeral: survivor benefits and the estate

A surviving spouse, child or parent may qualify for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC), a tax-free monthly VA benefit, for example when the death was service connected (VA Form 21P-534EZ). The veteran's estate is settled under Georgia law; our sister site ProbateUS explains how probate works in Georgia and lists each county's probate court. For the rest of the paperwork, from Social Security to bank accounts, DeathUS has a step-by-step checklist of what to do when someone dies.

Funeral homes near Georgia National Cemetery

A funeral director usually arranges the burial with the cemetery. These are the closest funeral homes by straight-line distance. Each one links to its full listing on FuneralUS, our funeral home directory.

  1. 2.1 mi from the cemetery
  2. 4.4 mi from the cemetery
  3. Sosebee Funeral Home
    Canton, GAMilitary honors services
    4.9 mi from the cemetery
  4. 5.0 mi from the cemetery
  5. 8.3 mi from the cemetery
  6. 9.9 mi from the cemetery

Search all funeral homes by ZIP on FuneralUS

FAQ

Questions about burial at Georgia National Cemetery

  • Is burial at Georgia National Cemetery free?

    Yes, for eligible veterans, spouses and dependent children. VA provides the gravesite, opening and closing of the grave, a burial liner, a headstone or marker, and perpetual care at no cost. The funeral home's services, such as transport and any service before the burial, are arranged and paid for separately.

  • Can I reserve a gravesite at Georgia National Cemetery in advance?

    No. You can ask VA for a pre-need eligibility decision before a death, but VA says the decision letter doesn't name a cemetery or gravesite, because neither can be reserved in advance.

  • How do I schedule a burial at Georgia National Cemetery?

    Fax the veteran's discharge papers to 866-900-6417 or email them to [email protected]. Then you or the funeral director call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117 (Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET). National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.

  • Where can I see the burial schedule for Georgia National Cemetery?

    On VA's daily burial schedule at https://www.cem.va.gov/cem/dailyburialschedule/. It covers every national cemetery, but it only lists burials whose families agreed to publish them.

  • Are military funeral honors provided at Georgia National Cemetery?

    Yes, if you ask for them. Your funeral director, a Veterans Service Organization or the cemetery staff can arrange them. At minimum, two uniformed service members fold and present the burial flag at the committal shelter, and Taps is played.

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