Information about Clark Veterans Cemetery

Clark Veterans Cemetery

Photo by VFW Post 2485 Clark Veterans Cemetery Burials and Other Memorials

Clark Veterans Cemetery is a burial site along Roxas Avenue in Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga. Over 8,600 mainly American veterans and Filipino scouts who served in the United States Army were laid to rest here.  

When the second World War concluded in 1946, the governments of the United States and the Philippines planned on burying the bodies of the deceased in Fort William McKinley in Metro Manila. However, the casualties amounted to around 17,000. Due to the lack of space at Fort William McKinley, the US government decided to bury the bodies of those who did not die from World War II in Clark, which was known as Fort Stontsenburg at the time. 

The Philippine government allowed members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2485 to handle the operation of the cemetery from 1994 to 2013. Today, the American Battle Monuments Commission operates and maintains the Clark Veterans Cemetery after US President Barack Obama signed into law the Dignified Burial and Other Veterans’ benefits Improvement Act also known as Public Law 112-260 in January 2013.

The law orders the American Battle Monuments Commission to take care of the cemetery after an agreement between the Philippines and US signed in December 2013. It is the commission’s 25th cemetery. 

Best time to visit

Tourists who want to revisit the Philippine history may visit the cemetery and memorial daily. It is open to public from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., except on December 25 and January 1 holidays.