Congressional legislation approved on May 18,1936 to establish the Long Island National Cemetery to serve New York City and the surrounding area. With the purchase of 175 acres of land from Pinelawn Cemetery. In 1950 the cemetery purchased approximately 233 acres to the north, bringing the cemetery to its current size of 364.7 acres.
The first interment took place in March 1937. Today there are more than 356,440 individuals interred on its grounds. The cemetery was designed in formal geometric pattern with roads organizing burial sections; with a flagpole in a prominent location. A "mall" area near the flagpole serves as a Distinguished Service Section, which primarily consists of Medal of Honor recipients.
The standard plaques installed here are the General Orders No. 80, National Cemetery Act, Memorial Day Order, and Gettysburg Address. Monuments and Memorials;
A granite monument affixed with bronze emblems representing Nassau and Suffolk county veteran organizations, "in memory of their departed comrades," was erected in May 1940 as part of the cemetery's official dedication.
AMVETS, All Veterans Monument, 1996.
Chosin Few Monument (Korea), 2001.
Vietnam War Monument, May 2015.
Medal of Honor Recipients;
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 eligibility criteria for the Medal of Honor have changed over time.
Recipients:
First Lieutenant Stephen Edward Karopczyc (Vietnam). He received the Medal of Honor posthumously for service in the U.S. Army, Company A, 35th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division, in recognition of perseverance and selfless devotion to his men during a battle in Kontrm Province, Republic of Vietnam, March 12, 1967. Karopczyc was killed in action and is buried in Section DSS, Site 916.(source) (
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Specialist Fifth Class John James Kedenburg (Vietnam). He received the Medal of Honor posthumously for service in the U.S. Army, 1st Special Forces, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), in recognition of inspiring leadership and self-sacrifice as an advisor to a reconnaissance team of South Vietnamese troops in the Republic of Vietnam, June 13, 1968. Kedenburg is buried in Section 2H, Site 3684.(source) (
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Group Burials
Among the interments in Long Island National Cemetery are thirty-nine World War II group burials containing the remains of 112 veterans. For these individuals, the circumstances of death were such that their remains could not be identified for separate burials. These honored dead, who fought and died together, are united in group burials. Specially designed government headstones inscribed with names, ranks, and dates of death mark their shared graves. The largest group burial in the cemetery is composed of unknown remains of ten U.S. Army Air Corps servicemen who died together on May 4, 1945 when their plane was lost on a bombardment mission to Koror, Palau: three officers, one technical sergeant, two sergeants, and four corporals. (Section J, Site 13630)
In 1948 the remains of sixteen Civil War soldiers of the 14th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery were removed from the cemetery at Forat Fort Greble, RI, and reinterred in Long Island National Cemetery. (Section O, Site 37525)
In 1952, 104 remains from the abandoned post cemetery on Fort McKinley, ME, were reinterred in Long Island National Cemetery. (Section O, Site 39)
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