Green-Wood Cemetery has 2,000 Civil War vets in unmarked graves
Schumer pushes VA for change in headstone rules
Thousands of Civil War veterans are buried in Brooklyn’s historic Green-Wood Cemetery, but an estimated 2,000 of them are resting in unmarked graves, according to US Senator Charles Schumer, who said something should be done to give these heroes the posthumous recognition they deserve.
The graves are unmarked because of a new rule imposed by the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) which states that only a direct descendent of a 19th Century war veteran can request a headstone for the soldier’s grave. The VA has omitted cemeteries, historians, museums and veterans associations from requesting headstones for unmarked graves of Civil War veterans. As a result, many veterans are in unmarked graves because there may not be a next-of-kin, Schumer said.
Schumer is calling on Veteran Affairs (VA) to reverse its decision and allow cemeteries and other interested parties to obtain gravestones.
“All veterans deserve to have their final resting spot marked and honored with a headstone and this is especially true of our Civil War veterans,” Schumer said.