Burial at Washington Crossing National Cemetery: A family guide

History of Washington Crossing National Cemetery

In 1681, King Charles II of England granted a sizable piece of his land holdings in America to William Penn to satisfy a debt owed to the Penn family. The next year, Penn established the three original counties in the Pennsylvania Colony, including Bucks County. Immigrants, primarily from the British Isles and Germany, arrived and settled on small farms, producing potash, wheat, salted pork and other products.

During the Revolutionary War, in the summer and fall of 1776, General George Washington's Continental Army suffered a series of losses in New York and New Jersey. By December, the British offensive forced General Washington and his troops to withdraw into Pennsylvania and decamp in Bucks County. The general was in desperate need of a military victory to resuscitate the morale of his army and the American public.

General Washington suspected that the British were complacent after their successes, and sought an offensive maneuver that might catch them off guard. On the night of December 25–26, 1776, Washington led his troops across the Delaware River in the first movement of a surprise attack against Hessian forces in British service. The Continental Army won the subsequent Battle of Trenton and provided the Americans with a much-needed victory.

The Delaware River crossing was more than a strategic triumph. It grew to symbolize both Washington's heroism and the resiliency of the burgeoning republic at one of the darkest hours of the revolution. German artist Emmanuel Leutze depicted this momentous event in his 1849 painting Washington Crossing the Delaware, to inspire supporters of democracy and greater political representation in Germany in the aftermath of the unsuccessful Revolutions of 1848. The idealized and historically inaccurate scene has become an iconic depiction of the crossing; copies hang in the White House and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Notable veterans buried at Washington Crossing National Cemetery

The National Cemetery Administration documents the following veterans of note buried at Washington Crossing National Cemetery, listed by section and site as recorded in the cemetery's official register.

• Georgian Mildred J. Dalton (1914–2013) graduated from Grady Memorial Hospital School of Nursing and was head surgical nurse there before joining the U.S. Army. She served in the Army Nurse Corps from 1939 to 1946 at Fort Benning, then in the Philippine Islands. Already in the Pacific when the United States entered World War II, Dalton tended the wounded on the Bataan Peninsula. In May 1942 she was among 66 army nurses captured at Corregidor and sent to Santo Tomas prison camp. Despite being malnourished captives themselves, the nurses treated thousands of prisoners until Allied troops liberated them. Dalton was awarded the Bronze Star and promoted to first lieutenant. She participated in a war bond campaign to end her tour, where she met her husband, Arthur Manning. By the time of her death, Manning was known as the last "Angel of Corregidor." She is buried in Section 6, Site 1270.

Eligibility for burial at Washington Crossing National Cemetery

Planning ahead for a Veteran's or loved-one's final resting place can eliminate unnecessary delays and reduce stress on a family at a difficult time.

The Department of Veterans Affairs covers the grave plot, opening and closing of the grave, perpetual care, a government-furnished headstone or marker, and a U.S. burial flag at no cost to eligible families.

Visiting hours

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 except Memorial Day and Veterans 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.

How to schedule a burial at Washington Crossing National Cemetery

1. The funeral home or family contacts the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 1-800-535-1117 (24/7 for active funeral arrangements).
2. Provide the veteran's full name, date of birth, social security number, dates of service, branch, and date of death.
3. Fax or email the DD-214 to the cemetery's interment office for verification.
4. Once eligibility is confirmed (typically 30–60 minutes for complete documentation), the cemetery assigns a date, time, and committal shelter.
5. The funeral home transports the deceased to Washington Crossing National Cemetery at the assigned time. The cemetery handles opening, closing, and perpetual care from that point.

Where Washington Crossing National Cemetery sits in the Pennsylvania cemetery system

Washington Crossing National Cemetery is one of the veteran cemeteries operating in Pennsylvania. The cemetery is currently accepting new in-ground and columbarium interments. Families should verify status before planning.

For families considering alternatives, the nearest veteran cemeteries appear in our cemetery sidebar. If Washington Crossing National Cemetery is fully reserved, those alternatives are typically the next options.