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VA National Cemeteries

Houston National Cemetery burial schedule and eligibility

Houston, Texas · VA national cemetery

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

VeteranFunerals Editorial·4 min read·May 1, 2026·Facts checked

You can look up burials at Houston 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 Houston National Cemetery

The Houston Veterans Administration Cemetery was dedicated December 7, 1965. It was the only government cemetery constructed in the United States during the 1960s.

The present-day Houston National Cemetery was the largest of its kind at the time of construction. Designed entirely by VA staff, it was also the only new VA cemetery not located on the grounds of a VA hospital. Prior to Houston's opening, the last VA cemetery established was at Eagle Point VA Medical Center, Oregon, in 1952. The largest VA cemeteries at the time were in Los Angeles at 114.47 acres, and Leavenworth, KS, at 113.15 acres. At 419.2 acres, the Houston facility was slightly smaller than the 450 acres or so of Arlington National Cemetery, to which it was compared.

Houston became a national cemetery in 1973 after the passage of the National Cemetery Act.

In 2017, the Houston National Cemetery was listed in the National Register of Historical Places.

Notable veterans buried at Houston National Cemetery

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

  • Medal of Honor
  • The Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action against an enemy force that can be bestowed upon an individual serving in the Armed Services of the United States. Recipients receive the Medal of Honor from the President on behalf of Congress. It was first awarded during the Civil War and the eligibility criteria, medal design, and recognition on a recipients' grave marker have all evolved over time. There are 434 Medal of Honor recipients interred at VA national cemeteries including 6 double recipients.
  • Medal of Honor recipients interred or memorialized here:
  • Captain James H. Fields (World War II). He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, 10th Armored Infantry, 4th Armored Division, for actions near Rechicourt, France, September 27, 1944. Fields died in 1970 and is buried in Section H-B, Site 6.
  • Sergeant Major Macario Garcia (World War II). Macario Garcia, native of Mexico, enlisted in the U.S. Army on November 11, 1942. He was a staff sergeant with Company B, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, until October 8, 1945. On November 27, 1944, near Grosshau, Germany, a wounded Garcia single-handedly destroyed two enemy machinegun emplacements. He received the Medal of Honor on August 23, 1945. Garcia worked as a counselor with the Veterans Administration for twenty-five years, until his death on December 24, 1972. He is buried in Section H-A, Site 1.
  • First Lieutenant Raymond L. Knight (World War II). He received the Medal of Honor posthumously for service in the U.S. Army Air Corps in recognition of actions in a series of missions in the Northern Po Valley, Italy, and self-sacrifice trying to fly his shattered aircraft to its home field. Knight crashed and was killed on April 25, 1945. His remains were reinterred on April 25, 1992, in Section H-B, Site 11.
  • First Sergeant David H. McNerney (Vietnam). He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, Company A, 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division, for actions at Polei Doc, Republic of Vietnam, March 22, 1967. McNerney died in 2010 and is buried in Section H-A, Site 4.
  • Specialist Fifth Class Clarence Eugene Sasser (Vietnam). Clarence Sasser (1947–2024), a native of Rosharon, TX, enlisted in the U.S. Army in June 1967. SP5 Sasser served as a medical aidman with Company A, 3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division, and received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions on January 10, 1968. On that day, while his unit was under attack, Sasser ran across an open rice paddy to render aid to his wounded comrades, receiving multiple wounds in the process. He continued to treat the wounded, despite severe loss of blood, until evacuation helicopters came the next morning. Sasser received his Medal of Honor in a ceremony at the White House on March 7, 1969. After the war, he married and worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Houston. Clarence Sasser passed away on May 13, 2024, and is buried in Section H-A, Site 3.

Visiting hours at Houston National Cemetery

Visitation Hours: Open daily from 6:00 a.m to 9:00 p.m. Office Hours: Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Closed federal holidays except Memorial Day. 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 Houston 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 Houston 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 Houston National Cemetery and a date. National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.

Where is the Houston National Cemetery burial schedule?

VA posts a daily burial schedule for every national cemetery. Search it for Houston 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 Houston National Cemetery directly at 281-447-8686.

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 Texas law; our sister site ProbateUS explains how probate works in Texas 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 Houston 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. 0.2 mi from the cemetery
  2. 1.0 mi from the cemetery
  3. 1.1 mi from the cemetery
  4. 1.1 mi from the cemetery
  5. 2.0 mi from the cemetery
  6. 2.9 mi from the cemetery

Search all funeral homes by ZIP on FuneralUS

FAQ

Questions about burial at Houston National Cemetery

  • Is burial at Houston 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 Houston 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 Houston 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 Houston 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 Houston 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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