Leavenworth National Cemetery is a VA national cemetery in Leavenworth, Kansas. VA lists it as open for burials. Burial is free for eligible veterans, their spouses and dependent children.
Source: National Cemetery Administration (cem.va.gov), retrieved May 2026
History of Leavenworth National Cemetery
Leavenworth National Cemetery is associated with the Western Branch of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers; one of 11 facilities which served as precursors for Veterans Administration Medical Centers. Today the cemetery encompasses 128.8 acres at the southeast portion of the facility.
Prior to the construction of the healthcare facility, the land had been part of a Delaware Indian reservation, and later the Stockbridge (Indian) Baptist Mission. The cemetery was designed concurrent to construction of the first buildings of the National Home; 17 structures were completed by 1886, the same year Thomas Brennan was interred. The design of the cemetery landscape is attributed to H. W. S. Cleveland, with roads that wind up the hill overlooking the Missouri River valley.
The "Old Soldier's Home," as it was known colloquially, became an integral component of the community. The first local trolley line connected Ft. Leavenworth and the soldier's home by way of the town of Leavenworth.
The medical facility was transferred to the Veterans Administration (VA) when it was formed in 1930. The cemetery was elevated to national cemetery status and transferred to the new National Cemetery System within VA in 1973. Among the noteworthy burials are the remains of 12 Native Americans that were discovered during the excavation for a new medical building and were re-interred in the National Cemetery. Seven Medal of Honor recipients are buried here.
Historic structures in the cemetery include the rest house, a small rustic limestone structure erected in 1921; a 1928 tool house, and a Classical Revival limestone rostrum or "speakers stand," built in 1936. The cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a component of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Medical Center Historic District, the former Western Branch of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, in 1999.
Monuments and Memorials A limestone obelisk monument erected in memory of "Soldiers Who Died For Their Country" was dedicated in 1919. Situated atop the crest of a hill, the monument overlooks the Missouri River valley from the highest ridge of the cemetery. The monument was transported by the Santa Fe Railroad and moved to its present location in 1919 by prisoners and a team of oxen from the state prison in Lansing. Among the graves in this section are early governors (managers) of the soldier's home and their families.
The American Veterans (AMVETS) donated a carillon to the cemetery in 2000.
The "Fighting Fourth" Marine Monument was erected by the Fourth Marine Division Association and dedicated in 2002.
Notable interments
The National Cemetery Administration lists these people of note buried at Leavenworth National Cemetery, with section and site where recorded.
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:
Private William W.
Burritt (Civil War). He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, Company G, 113th Illinois Infantry, for actions at Vicksburg, Mississippi, April 27, 1863. Burritt died in 1901 and is buried in Section 16, Row 5, Site 7.
Second Lieutenant Daniel A.
Dorsey (Civil War). Dorsey was one of the first recipients of the Medal of Honor for actions during "The Great Locomotive Chase" at Big Shanty, Georgia, in April 1862. He served in the U.S. Army, Company H, 33rd Ohio Infantry, and was captured during the raid. Released on a prisoner exchange, Dorsey received his award in September 1863. Dorsey died in 1918 and is buried in Section 11, Row 19, Site 8.
Corporal John S.
Durham (Civil War). He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, Company F, 1st Wisconsin Infantry, for actions at Perryville, Kentucky, October 8, 1862. Durham died in 1918 and is buried in Section 33, Row 10, Site18.
Sergeant William Garrett (Civil War).
He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, Company G, 41st Ohio Infantry, for actions at Nashville, Tennessee, December 16, 1864. Garrett died in 1916 and is buried in Section 32, Row 3, Site 26.
Specialist Charles C.
Hagemeister (Vietnam) was born on August 21, 1946, in Nebraska. He was drafted while on a break from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln in 1966, and became a medical specialist in Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry (1st Cavalry Division). On March 20, 1967, his unit was ambushed and surrounded at Binh Dinh Province, Vietnam. Braving constant fire for hours, he repeatedly exposed himself to save his comrades and neutralized a sniper and other enemies. President Lyndon Johnson presented the Medal of Honor to Hagemeister in May 1968. He remained in the Army, received a commission, and retired as a lieutenant colonel in 1990. Subsequently, he served on the faculty of the U.S. Army Command & General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He died May 19, 2021, and is interred in Section 69, Row 6, Site 55.
Sergeant Robert McPhelan (Indian Wars) was born in Queens County Ireland around 1835.
He enlisted into the Army in 1858 and was assigned to Company E, 5th United States Infantry Regiment. He participated in the Utah War (1857–1858), then served in New Mexico throughout the Civil War (1861–1865). Following Custer's defeat at Little Big Horn in June 1876, Colonel Nelson Miles led the 5th into the Montana Territory. Peace talks with Sitting Bull at Cedar Creek, MT, failed on October 21, 1876. Approximately 2,000 Sioux surrendered six days later. Sitting Bull and his ardent supporters fled north toward Canada through the winter, however. Nearly thirty soldiers were awarded the Medal of Honor for this winter campaign, including McPhelan. He became a civilian employee with the Quartermaster at Leavenworth after his 1878 discharge. He died of pneumonia connected to service wounds in February 1884. He was buried in the paupers' section of Mount Cavalry Catholic Cemetery in Leavenworth and reinterred on June 4, 2021 in Section 69, Row 6, Site 61.
First Sergeant John H.
Shingle (Indian Wars). He received the Medal of Honor while serving in the U.S. Army, Troop I, 3rd U.S. Cavalry, for actions at Rosebud River, Montana Territory, June 17, 1876. Shingle died in 1907 and is buried in Section 22, Row 4, Site 2.
Other Burials During the construction of Building 122 on the Medical Center grounds, the remains of 12 Native Americans were uncovered.
They were reinterred in a single grave, Section 34, Row 21, Site 8, the only group burial in the cemetery. It is believed that they belonged to a small band of Christian Indians, the Munsees, who during the early 1800s were permitted to settle on land now occupied by the Dwight D. Eisenhower Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Center.
Harry H.
Hollowell was born in 1914 in Arkansas. His family moved to Kansas when he was child, and there he learned to play the violin and trombone. Hollowell enlisted in the army in 1936 and served in the all-black 10th cavalry at Fort Leavenworth, becoming one of the Buffalo Soldiers. In 1942 his musical talent earned him a place in the Army Music School, and he became one of the first African Americans to train there as a bandleader. Warrant Officer Hollowell then led army bands and directed music programs until his retirement in 1964. At that time, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Hollowell was the first black soldier to hold that rank. He continued to be active in the Leavenworth community, and Hollowell Drive was named for him in 2009. Hollowell died February 14, 2005, and is buried in Leavenworth National Cemetery .
Section 57, Row 4, Site 46
Directions
Cemetery is located in Southeast Leavenworth. From Kansas City International Airport, take Interstate 29 North 7.5 miles to Platte City exit 20. Turn left and proceed through Platte City to Highway 92 and turn West for 8.5 miles. After crossing the bridge into Leavenworth turn left on Highway’s 73 and 7. Travel four miles to Highway 5 (Muncie Road) and proceed .5 miles. The cemetery is on your left.
Flowers and grounds rules
Cemetery policies are conspicuously posted and readily visible to the public.
Floral arrangements accompanying the casket or urn at the time of burial will be placed on the completed grave.
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 Leavenworth National Cemetery.
A National Cemetery System Leavenworth National Cemetery
Who can be buried at Leavenworth 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 Leavenworth National Cemetery?
- 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).
- 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.
- You or the funeral director call 800-535-1117 (Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET) to request Leavenworth National Cemetery and a date. National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday.
Where is the Leavenworth National Cemetery burial schedule?
VA posts a daily burial schedule for every national cemetery. Search it for Leavenworth 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 Leavenworth National Cemetery directly at 913-727-1376.
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 Kansas law; our sister site ProbateUS explains how probate works in Kansas 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 Leavenworth National Cemetery, by straight-line distance:
- Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery, Fort Leavenworth, KS: 6 mi, status not listed
- Union Confederate Monument Site, Kansas City, MO: 22 mi, closed to new in-ground burials
- Missouri State Veterans Cemetery - Higginsville, Higginsville, MO: 64 mi, open for burials
Funeral homes near Leavenworth 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.
- R.L. Leintz Funeral HomeLeavenworth, KS1.5 mi from the cemetery
- Davis Funeral Chapel, IncLeavenworth, KSMilitary honors services3.2 mi from the cemetery
- Charter Funerals - Sunset ChapelLeavenworth, KS4.0 mi from the cemetery
- Belden-Larkin Funeral HomeLeavenworth, KS4.4 mi from the cemetery
- Rollins Funeral HomePlatte City, MO9.2 mi from the cemetery
- Vaughn Funeral HomeWeston, MO11.0 mi from the cemetery