U. S. Dept. of Veteran Affairs Nationwide Grave Locator
The Nationwide Gravesite Locator allows you to search for a veteran's grave and family members buried with the veteran, in veteran national cemeteries, state cemeteries, other military cemeteries, and private cemeteries where the veteran has a government headstone. The search engine allows you to search by the name of the deceased. There are some limitations to this database such as private cemetery burials are only recorded prior to 1997.
If you are curious about obtaining a military headstone for a veteran, consult the New Law Concerning Eligibility for Headstones and Markers web site. Free headstones are available for those veterans with an unmarked grave. For those with a marked grave site, consult the web site for new legislation that addresses this issue.
American Battle Monuments Commission
For veterans who died overseas, you may want to check out the American Battle Monuments Commission. The Commission is charged with caring for United States veteran cemeteries overseas. Begun in 1917, the Commission looks after 24 cemeteries that are the final resting place for about 125,000 soldiers.
Its online databases, organized by the surname name of the deceased and the conflict include those interred at a World War I or World War II cemetery overseas; those missing in action from World War I and World War II who are memorialized on memorials overseas; those killed worldwide during the Korean War; War dead and veterans of the Mexican War, American Civil War, and Spanish-American War who are buried at American cemeteries in Corozal, Panama, and Mexico City; those Missing in Action who are memorialized at the Honolulu Memorial; and all interments at Corozal, including civilians who were working on the Panama Canal. To search these databases, from the main page click on "Burial Listings" on the left-hand side and then click on the database of interest.
If you find your soldier listed, the ABMC provides services such as information about the grave location of the cemetery; escort around the cemetery; letters authorizing fee-free passports for immediate family members traveling to the cemetery; photographs of gravestone or name on Tablets of the Missing; arrangements for flowers to be placed on grave; and more.
Civil War Burials
The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, an auxiliary of the Grand Army of the Republic, has a National Graves Registration Database that is searchable by name. Once at this site click on "search entries" to begin your search. This database is a volunteer project that includes the burial places, government and private, for Union veterans of the Civil War. This database can contain information, not only of where the veteran is laid to rest but his or her birth and death date; some military information such as rank; enlistment and discharge date and unit with which the veteran served; and the GAR post of which the veteran was a member.
Other Cemetery Sites
Although not military oriented, several other cemetery sites exist that may help you locate a burial. Remember that most of these sites are volunteer driven and may not contain complete transcripts of the cemeteries for which they provide information. Other, general cemetery listing sites include Cemetery Interment Lists On The Internet and Find A Grave: Noteworthy Gravesites. Web sites such as the The USGenWeb Project, and Rootsweb.com may also contain cemetery transcriptions. While searching the library at FamilySearch International, conduct a place search and then check out the cemetery categories for transcriptions of various cemeteries in a state and county.