Fort Harrison National Cemetery

Fort Harrison National Cemetery is a VA national cemetery in Richmond, Virginia. VA lists it as closed to new burials. Burial is free for eligible veterans, their spouses and dependent children.

Source: National Cemetery Administration (cem.va.gov), retrieved May 2026

History of Fort Harrison National Cemetery

Fort Harrison National Cemetery is located in Henrico County, VA, seven miles south of Richmond. It is a small cemetery of 1.6 acres, which owes its existence to circumstances of the Civil War. After the Battle of Cold Harbor in the summer of 1864, which secured the Union's northern front during its Richmond campaign, General Ulysses S. Grant marched southeast in an effort to cut off the Confederate troops. To prevent General Robert E. Lee from shifting troops around Richmond, the Union made a surprise attack on Fort Harrison, a strategic Confederate stronghold overlooking the James River. Union soldiers captured it on September 29, 1864. Confederate attempts to retake Fort Harrison the next day were unsuccessful and the fort remained under Union control until the evacuation of Richmond in April 1865. During this period, it was temporarily renamed Fort Burnham in honor of Union General Hiram Burnham, who was killed at Chapin's Farm during the federal attack on Fort Harrison.

At the end of the war, a site near Fort Harrison was appropriated for use as a cemetery. This national cemetery contains the original interments of Union soldiers who died on the battlefields of Forts Harrison, and Gilmer, and from some 40 locations within a five-mile area surrounding the cemetery. The number of unknown dead at Fort Harrison far exceeds the known dead. As of July 1876, 239 of 814 interments were known, while 575 were unknown, including four Confederate prisoners of war.

The cemetery remains a picturesque walled site with a standard, Victorian stone lodge. Fort Harrison National Cemetery was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 10, 1995.

Notable interments

The National Cemetery Administration lists these people of note buried at Fort Harrison National Cemetery, with section and site where recorded.

Directions

Situated in Henrico County, 7½ miles southeast of Richmond. The cemetery may be reached from U.S. Highway 60 turning south on Laburnum Avenue. From Laburnum Avenue turn left on Wilson Road. Wilson Road, after crossing New Market, becomes Varina Road. Follow Varina Road. for approximately two miles. Cemetery is on the right. Cemetery can also be reached from Interstate 64 by taking the Laburnum Avenue south exit and following directions as given above.

Flowers and grounds rules

Our cemetery floral regulations exist only to reflect the honor and respect we hold for our Nation's Veterans, by preserving the dignity and solemnity of their final resting place.

Fresh cut flowers may be placed at gravesites at any time using cemetery-supplied floral vases. The vases may be found in a bin at the front of the cemetery next to the trash receptacle.

Education and visiting programs

More than half of VA's national cemeteries originated with the Civil War and many are closed to some burials. Other sites were established to serve World War veterans and they continue to expand. Historic themes related with NCA's cemeteries and soldiers' lots vary, but visitors should understand "Why is it here?" NCA began by installing interpretive signs, or waysides, at more than 100 properties to observe the Civil War Sesquicentennial (2011–2015). Please follow the links below to see the interpretive signs for Fort Harrison National Cemetery.

A National Cemetery System Fort Harrison National Cemetery

Who can be buried at Fort Harrison 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 Fort Harrison 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 Fort Harrison National Cemetery and a date. National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.

VA lists Fort Harrison National Cemetery as closed. Ask the scheduling office what, if anything, can still be arranged here, and about open national cemeteries nearby.

Where is the Fort Harrison National Cemetery burial schedule?

VA posts a daily burial schedule for every national cemetery. Search it for Fort Harrison 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 Fort Harrison National Cemetery directly at 804-795-2031.

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 Virginia law; our sister site ProbateUS explains how probate works in Virginia 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.

Nearest cemeteries

The three veterans cemeteries closest to Fort Harrison National Cemetery, by straight-line distance:

• Richmond National Cemetery, Richmond, VA: 6 mi, closed to new in-ground burials
• Glendale National Cemetery, Richmond, VA: 7 mi, closed to new in-ground burials
• Seven Pines National Cemetery, Sandston, VA: 7 mi, closed to new in-ground burials