Engraving & Add-ons in California
Dates, inscriptions, portraits, medallions and QR codes — mobile and in-shop, laser and sandblast. Served across California with a local network near Carmichael, Sacramento, Laguna Woods.
Engraving & Add-ons across California, coordinated from first call to final photo
Add new dates, names and details to an existing monument, or personalize a new one. Our engraving team works both on-site at the cemetery and in-shop, using laser and sandblast etching for inscriptions, portraits, medallions and even QR codes. Send close-up photos so the team can assess the existing lettering and agree a suitable approach.
In California, engraving & add-ons is supported by our 7 showroom and warehouse locations in Carmichael, Sacramento, Laguna Woods, Colma, Los Angeles, Morgan Hill. These are listed locations, not a promise of shorter lead times or lower charges. Confirm access, crew availability and the full scope for your cemetery before booking.
We work with monuments purchased from any retailer — not just our own family of brands — and every visit in California is documented with photos so distant families can see the work was done correctly and respectfully.
Engraving & Add-ons in California covers
A simple, documented process
Share inscription or artwork
Send the text, dates or portrait you'd like added.
We etch on-site or in-shop
Laser or sandblast etching matched to existing lettering.
Review & confirm
You approve the finished engraving with photos.
Inscriptions and medallions on veterans’ graves in California
VA's National Cemetery Administration lists 12 cemeteries in California: 5 open for new burials, 1 open for cremated remains only and 6 with no new gravesites (closed). VA also lists 4 grant-funded state or tribal veterans cemeteries in California.
A government medallion may be provided for eligible Veterans who served on or after April 6, 1917 and whose grave is marked with a privately purchased headstone or marker.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs
VA does not pay to affix that medallion to a privately purchased headstone in a non-national cemetery; it delivers the medallion to the applicant.
Source: 38 CFR 38.630
A government headstone or marker should not be altered. VA may replace it to change or add inscription details when the next of kin ask within six months of the original being provided.
Source: 38 CFR 38.630
Featured California cemeteries
Inscriptions record service and sacrifice. Here is what VA publishes for San Francisco National Cemetery and Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery.
San Francisco National Cemetery
Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor recipients VA lists as interred or memorialized here include Second Lieutenant William Allen (Indian Wars); Signal Quartermaster Matthew Arthur (Civil War); Lieutenant Colonel James Coey (Civil War).
Monuments and memorials
The Pacific Coast Garrison Monument was dedicated as part of a Memorial Day program 1897 that drew an estimated 10,000 participants and observers.
It honors the Regular Army & Navy Union, a veterans organization founded in 1886 to support national defense.
At more than 17 feet tall, the Union color bearer standing on a base is among the few NCA monuments made of cast zinc ("white-bronze").
History
When Spain colonized what would become California, this area was selected as the site for a fort, or presidio, to defend San Francisco Bay.
About 40 families traveled here from northern Mexico in 1776 and built the first settlement, a small quadrangle, only a few hundred feet west of what is now Funston Avenue.
Mexico controlled the Presidio following 1821, but the fort became increasingly less important to the Mexican government.
In 1835, most soldiers and their families moved north to Sonoma, leaving it nearly abandoned.
During the Mexican War, U.S. troops occupied and repaired the damage to the fort.
General information
San Francisco National Cemetery is located in the Presidio of San Francisco, one of the oldest military installations in the United States and the first national cemetery on the West Coast.
The cemetery was established pursuant to War Department General Order No. 133, dated 12 December 1884.
This order designated 9.5 acres of land, including a previously established post cemetery, as the San Francisco National Cemetery.
Address, phone and hours
1 Lincoln Boulevard San Francisco, CA 94129 Don't send mail to this address.
Phone: 650-589-7737
Visitation: Open daily from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Office: Contact the Golden Gate National Cemetery Administrative Office from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Directions from the nearest airport
Cemetery is located in the Northern section of San Francisco.
From San Francisco International Airport, take Hwy 101 North to San Bruno/Hwy 380 exit to Hwy 280 North.
Follow 19th Avenue/Park Presidio Blvd north, turn right onto California St. Turn left onto Arguello Blvd which leads onto the Presidio.
Quoted from the official page for San Francisco National Cemetery (cem.va.gov), checked October 23, 2026. Rules, hours and burial status can change, so confirm with the cemetery before scheduling work.
Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery
Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor recipients VA lists as interred or memorialized here include Commander Charles Francis Bishop (Mexican Campaign); Major Mason Carter (Indian Wars); Staff Sergeant Peter S. Connor (Vietnam).
Monuments and memorials
The granite and bronze USS Wasp (CV-7) monument commemorates the loss of fellow shipmates during Battle of Guadalcanal on September 15, 1942.
Erected in 1995, the upright granite block measures approximately 6½ feet tall with an affixed bronze plaque.
History
Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery is located on the Fort Rosecrans Military Reservation, 10 miles west of San Diego, California.
The hilly peninsula offers picturesque vistas to the city, bay, and Pacific Ocean.
Unlike previous new cemeteries, locations were based on Veterans' places of residence, especially in or near large cities.
New cemetery locations were based on Veterans' places of residence.
The other interwar national cemeteries are Baltimore, Maryland; Fort Bliss and Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Fort Snelling, Minnesota; Golden Gate, California; and Long Island, New York.
Address, phone and hours
1700 Cabrillo Memorial Drive San Diego, CA 92106
Phone: 619-553-2084
Visitation: Open daily from sunrise to sunset.
Office: Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Closed federal holidays except Memorial Day.
Decoration calendar
Potted plants will be permitted on graves and in the gravel areas surrounding Columbarium, Memorial Wall or Memorial Monuments five days before and five after Easter Sunday and Memorial Day.
During the winter season a Holiday wreath or plant is allowed.
Directions from the nearest airport
Turn right on N. Harbor Drive, turn left on Rosecrans Street, turn right on Canon Street, turn left on Catalina Boulevard.
From Interstate 5 South or Interstate-8 West: Exit at Rosecrans Street, turn right on Canon Street, turn left on Catalina Boulevard.
Quoted from the official page for Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery (cem.va.gov), checked October 23, 2026. Rules, hours and burial status can change, so confirm with the cemetery before scheduling work.
VA national cemeteries in California
- Bakersfield National Cemetery · ArvinOpen
- Benicia Arsenal Post Cemetery · BeniciaClosed
- Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery · San DiegoClosed
- Golden Gate National Cemetery · San BrunoClosed
- Los Angeles National Cemetery · Los AngelesClosed
- Los Angeles National Cemetery Annex · Los AngelesCremation only
- Mare Island Naval Cemetery · VallejoClosed
- Miramar National Cemetery · San DiegoOpen
- Riverside National Cemetery · RiversideOpen
- Sacramento Valley National Cemetery · DixonOpen
- San Francisco National Cemetery · San FranciscoClosed
- San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery · Santa NellaOpen
State and tribal veterans cemeteries
- Big Sandy Rancheria Veterans Cemetery · AuberryOpen
- California Central Coast Veterans Cemetery · SeasideOpen
- Northern California Veterans Cemetery · IgoOpen
- Yurok Veterans Cemetery · WeitchpecOpen
Sources: VA national cemetery list, VA grant-funded cemetery list, VA headstones, markers and medallions and 38 CFR 38.630. Checked October 23, 2026. Burial-space status can change, so confirm with the cemetery before scheduling work.
Serving California from 7 nearby locations
Trusted by families and funeral homes across the country
“They handled everything with our mother’s monument — delivery, cemetery coordination, installation and photos afterward. We live in another state, so knowing it was set correctly and respectfully meant the world to us.”
Linda M.
Family, out-of-state
“The deep cleaning and leveling completely transformed the family plot. The before-and-after photos were incredible, and now the stone looks like it did when it was first installed. We’re very grateful for the care they showed.”
Emily R.
Family
“We added dates and a portrait to an existing monument through their engraving team. Everything matched perfectly and was done right at the cemetery. Communication was clear from start to finish.”
James P.
Family
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Learn moreEngraving & Add-ons in nearby states
See all services in California, learn more about Engraving & Add-ons, or view our national coverage map.
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