Baton Rouge National Cemetery

GPS Coordinates: 30.449406, -91.167653
County: East Baton Rouge Parish
Record count: 5,541

Ownership: National Cemetery Administration, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Directions: Located adjacent to Magnolia Cemetery on its south side, the national cemetery sits on the north-east corner of N 19th St. and Convention St. From downtown Baton Rouge, take Convention St. east to N 19th St., the cemetery entrance is on N 19th St.

Background: Baton Rouge National Cemetery was established in 1867 when the site where Union soldiers and sailors had been buried during the Civil War was officially designated as a national cemetery in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana. The cemetery's origins are tied to the Battle of Baton Rouge on August 5, 1862, when Union forces overwhelmed Confederate troops and maintained control of the city for the war's duration. Following the conflict, remains were gathered from battlefields near Baton Rouge and surrounding areas including Plaquemine, Louisiana, and Camden, Arkansas, with the government reportedly paying bonuses to anyone who discovered Union soldiers' graves for reinterment. The cemetery was initially enclosed by a substantial wooden fence until 1878, when the government contracted Michael and Bernard Jodd to construct a brick wall. Tragically, both contractors died in a yellow fever epidemic before completing the project and were buried in the cemetery, with local workmen finishing the wall. The cemetery reflects Baton Rouge's complex history under seven different national authorities, from French explorers in the late 17th century through Louisiana's admission to the Union in 1812 and subsequent Civil War period.

Burial Records

• View All Transcriptions Combined, 5,541 records
  • Unidentified Burials, by Interment.net, April 17, 2025, (537 records)
  • Veterans Affairs Database, by Interment.net, April 17, 2025, (5,004 records)

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