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Suresnes American Cemetery
Suresnes, France

GPS: 48.871812, 2.217361

123 Boulevard Washington
92150, Suresnes, France

Published: November 30, 2019
Total records: 2,538

Suresnes American Cemetery was built and is maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission.

Suresnes American Cemetery is in the city of Suresnes, five miles west of the center of Paris. A panorama view of Paris can be seen from the site, which is located high on the slopes of Mont Valerien.

Cemetery History

Suresnes American Cemetery covers 7 1/2 acres and sits on a hill named, "Mont Valerien". It had been known as "Mont Calvaire" in earlier times and was the site of a hermitage which was itself the goal of many pilgrimages. The hermits maintained gardens and vineyards, as well as a guest house. Thomas Jefferson often visited the guest house while he was Ambassador to France from 1784-1789.

In 1811, Emporer Napleon I confiscated Mont Valerien with the intention of building a home for the orphans of the Legion of Honor. During a subsequent visit to the site he changed his mind and decided to build a fort. Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in 1815 stopped the work and Mont Valerien was built and is presently in use by the French Signal Corps.

During WWII, German troops occupied the fort where they executed over 4,500 political prisoners and members of the Resistance Movement. The French people have erected an impressive monument along the south wall of the fort to commemorate this sacrifice. Thus, the hill in Suresnes has become a symbol to the French of democracy's struggle in the cause of freedom. Mont Valerien is a site of pilgrimage for both the French and American peoples.

The American military cemetery at Suresnes was established in 1917 by the Graves Registration Service of the Army Quartermaster Corps. A majority of the WWI dead buried there died of wounds or sickness in hospitals located in Paris or at other places in the Services of Supply. Many were victims of the influenza epidemic of 1918-1919.

At the end of WWII, it was decided that this particular cemetery should serve to commemorate the dead of both World Wars, and additional grave plot was created as an eternal resting place for the unidentified remains of 24 WWII unknowns. Commemorative loggias were also added to the original chapel.

The WWII section was dedicated in 1952 with an impressive ceremony presided over by General George C. Marshall, then Chairman of the Commission, and attended by distinguished representatives of the American and French governments.

Cemetery Records

The following records were acquired from the American Battle Monuments Commission on Novemeber 30, 2019. Dates of death range from 28-Mar-1916 to 26-Jan-1925. Some 974 of these records are those of soldiers whose bodies were missing, and not recovered. They are denoted in these records with the words, "Tablets of the Missing", referring to a special section of the cemetery where they have been remembered.

Only 24 of these records refer to WWII burials, and all of these are found in the "Unidentified Remains" section below.

Surname Index:

Downloadable Files

• Suresnes American Cemetery Booklet, (3.7 MB)
• Suresnes American Cemetery Brochure, (1.6 MB)