VA Headstones Mark Passing of Veterans

A polished new headstone stands by two worn markers in a tiny private cemetery, a tribute to the man whose grave site it marks and a federal program that tries to ensure that no veteran’s grave goes unmarked.

John Alford was a Revolutionary War veteran from Virginia who died in Nashville on April 24, 1837. Although he served in the military more than 200 years ago, his family still was eligible for a government headstone through the National Cemetery System, the section of the Department of Veterans Affairs that maintains 115 national cemeteries.

Steven Westerfeld, a spokesman for the system, said a gravestone can be the most significant benefit a veteran receives.

“These are people who fought for our country, and we owe a great debt of gratitude for that, and it behooves us to make sure that they are not forgotten,” Westerfeld said. “And one way we can do that is by providing a headstone or marker for them.”

The VA provided about 270,000 headstones last year. Although most of the markers go to recently deceased veterans, the tombstone and marker project also provides stones to replace those that have been lost, damaged or destroyed.

Jane Alford found that John Alford’s stone was crumbling when her genealogy research led her to the tiny cemetery on the lawn of a historic home on the outskirts of Nashville.

“His wife’s grave was there, and one of his daughters’. These two were left, but his was missing,” said Alford, who lives in Lewisburg, about 60 miles south of Nashville.

John Alford, her husband’s great-great-great-great-great- grandfather, joined the Army in Virginia and guarded British prisoners of war. When the revolution ended, he received land in Tennessee in exchange for his military service and moved there.

While researching his background, Jane Alford learned about the headstone program, which requires documentation of a veteran’s service.

It takes about a year for a headstone, valued at about $350, to be carved and shipped. Families may choose either granite or marble headstones, or a brass marker. The headstone or marker may be upright or flat.

Alford and other descendants of John Alford from Tennessee, Indiana, North Carolina and Alabama gathered recently for a ceremony when the new stone was set.

“We just didn’t want to lose this track, this trace of a person,” Alford said. “It felt like he meant a lot to us, so we just decided we wanted to do it.”