Arizona has 98 cemetery listings in our directory, but the total hides how different a burial decision looks from one part of the state to another. A family in Phoenix may choose among large memorial parks with funeral homes on site. A family in Bisbee or Aguila may deal with a small community ground run by a town, a church or a local board. This page explains how cemetery services are organised across Arizona, who oversees them, and how to reach the right office for a plot, a burial date or an old record.

How Burial Is Arranged Across Arizona

Most burials begin with one phone call to a cemetery office or a funeral home. The cemetery sells the right of interment: a grave, a niche, a crypt space or a cremation garden. The funeral home, if you use one, handles transport, paperwork and the service. Many Arizona operators combine both under one roof. Sunland Memorial Park & Mortuary in Sun City, Valley of the Sun Mortuary & Cemetery in Chandler and Sunset Vista Cemetery Funeral Home and Crematory in Yuma all work this way.

Ownership varies. Some cemeteries are private companies, some belong to religious bodies, and some are tied to towns or small communities. Phoenix Catholic Cemeteries & Funeral Home, at 2033 North 48th Street, is church-affiliated. Casa Grande Mt View Cemetery and Mammoth Valley View Cemetery serve smaller Pinal County communities, where offices are often modest. Ownership affects who may be buried, what the rules say about monuments, and how quickly someone answers the phone.

What you buy matters as much as who sells it. Cemeteries usually price the burial right separately from the opening and closing of the grave, any outer burial container, and the marker. Ask for each charge in writing. Some cemeteries require a liner or vault, and most limit marker size and materials, so confirm the rules before you order a headstone.

Who Oversees Cemeteries and Funeral Providers in Arizona

Arizona splits oversight among several bodies, and knowing which one to contact saves time. The Arizona Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers licenses funeral directors, embalmers and funeral establishments, and it takes complaints about them. The Arizona Department of Health Services, through its vital records office, handles death certificates. Prepaid funeral contracts are subject to state financial regulation, so a dispute over a prepaid plan may belong with the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions rather than with the cemetery.

Cemetery operations themselves are governed by Arizona Revised Statutes, which address matters such as sales practices, record keeping and the protection of burial sites. Because details change, ask any cemetery to show you its written rules and current price list. Check the state agency pages before you rely on a specific rule or deadline.

County offices matter too. A county medical examiner investigates deaths that require review, and the body is released only after that process ends. Your funeral home or the cemetery can tell you whether a case is delayed.

Burials outside a cemetery are a separate matter. Arizona law sets reporting steps when human remains are found outside a recorded cemetery, and the Arizona State Museum becomes involved when remains may be of Native American origin. If you find possible remains, stop work and call local law enforcement first.

Metro Phoenix, Tucson and Rural Arizona Compared

Maricopa County: the widest choice

Maricopa County holds 46 of the 98 listings, and the options range from large memorial parks to tiny historic grounds. In the Valley you will find Mesa Mountain View Memorial Gardens Cemetery on East Main Street, Arrowhead Memorial Gardens Cemetery on North 75th Avenue in Glendale, Avondale Holy Cross Cemetery on West Thomas Road, and Desert Hills Memorial Park Cemetery on East Bell Road in Scottsdale. At the edges of the county, Louis B Hazelton Cemetery in Buckeye and Tom Walder Memorial Park Cemetery in Aguila serve smaller communities. Distances inside the county are long, so choose a cemetery that relatives can reach easily.

Pima County: Tucson and the south

Pima County has 15 listings, with 13 of them in Tucson. East Lawn Palms Mortuary & Cemetery, at 5801 East Grant Road, is one of the named Tucson options and can be reached at 520-886-5561. Tucson's older cemeteries reflect its long Spanish, Mexican and Anglo history, and families often pick a ground that matches a parish or a relative's existing plot.

Rural Arizona: smaller offices, longer drives

Outside the two big metros, cemeteries are fewer and offices smaller. Cochise County has eight listings, including Douglas Calvary Cemetery on East 10th Street and Bisbee Evergreen Cemetery on Old Douglas Road, both tied to the area's mining-era towns. Mohave County's Hardyville Cemetery in Bullhead City recalls an early Colorado River settlement. Terrain and weather also shape practice. Flagstaff sits at about 7,000 feet, where winter snow and frozen ground can affect scheduling at Flagstaff Calvary Cemetery. Across the desert, hard caliche soil slows digging. Several rural listings have no phone number on file, so a call to the town hall or county office may be the fastest route.

Veterans, Historic and Faith-Based Cemeteries in Arizona

Veterans have a separate path. Southern Arizona Veterans Memorial Cemetery, at 1300 South Buffalo Soldier Trail in Sierra Vista, is a state veterans cemetery you can reach at 520-458-7144. The Arizona Department of Veterans' Services operates the state's veterans cemeteries, including one in Camp Verde. The National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona in Phoenix is a federal cemetery run by the VA National Cemetery Administration. Eligibility generally covers veterans discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, and certain spouses and dependents. Keep the veteran's DD-214 discharge paper ready, because every veterans cemetery asks for it.

Historic cemeteries attract a different kind of visitor. Bisbee Evergreen Cemetery and Hardyville Cemetery are the sort of places where genealogists look for pioneer-era names. Tombstone's Boot Hill, also in Cochise County, is the best-known example in the state. Treat these as protected places: stay on paths, do not use rubbings that damage worn stone, and ask about photography rules.

What to Bring Before You Call an Arizona Cemetery Office

A short checklist makes the first call easier and prevents repeat visits.

Timing matters in Arizona. In Phoenix and Tucson, summer afternoons regularly pass 100 degrees, so many families schedule graveside services early in the morning. Small offices may close on weekends, so call on a weekday morning and confirm hours before you drive.

Government cemeteries in Arizona include facilities administered by the VA's National Cemetery Administration, state veterans cemeteries funded through state and federal partnerships, and local municipal and county cemeteries operated by city and county governments throughout the state.

Cemetery locations are available in 45 cities across Arizona. They are spread across 11 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration include Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa, where established municipal cemeteries have served their communities for generations and maintain extensive historical burial records.

Veterans in Arizona may be eligible for burial in a state veterans cemetery at little or no cost. Contact the Arizona Department of Veterans Affairs or Veterans Services to confirm eligibility requirements and available state-operated facilities.

Cemetery by Counties

C
G
M
N
P
Y

Families and genealogists in Arizona can often request burial records from municipal cemetery offices or search online databases maintained by state archives and historical societies. Many Arizona counties have digitized older cemetery records that are available through county clerk or public library genealogy collections.

Browse Cemetery by county across Arizona to find the nearest location.

Comparing Arizona Cemeteries by County

Arizona's cemeteries cluster where people live, but the best match is sometimes one county over. Pinal County sits between Phoenix and Tucson. It holds Casa Grande Mt View Cemetery at 525 North Peart Road (520-836-8041), Valley Memorial Park Cemetery in Coolidge and Mammoth Valley View Cemetery. Families from either metro area sometimes look there when a family plot already exists or relatives live nearby.

In Yavapai County, Prescott Mountain View Cemetery on Willow Creek Road serves the Prescott area, while Clarkdale Valley View Cemetery and Cottonwood All Souls Cemetery serve the Verde Valley. They are different offices in different towns, so do not assume one can help with the other's records. Farther north, Coconino County lists Flagstaff Calvary Cemetery at 201 West University Drive (928-774-1105).

Some listings, such as Tempe Guadalupe Cemetery, Tom Walder Memorial Park Cemetery in Aguila and Bisbee Evergreen Cemetery, have no phone number on file. For those, contact the town or county office, or visit in daylight and look for a posted contact notice. Always confirm hours before travelling.

The Arizona Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers licenses funeral directors, embalmers and funeral establishments, and it accepts complaints about them. Start by raising the problem with the business in writing, and keep copies of contracts, price lists and receipts. If a prepaid funeral plan is involved, the Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions may be the better contact. For a cemetery sales dispute, ask the cemetery for its written policy first, then check the current state agency pages to see which office takes that type of complaint.

Arizona law generally lets families handle some steps themselves, but the death certificate and disposition paperwork still have to go through the official registration process. In practice, most families use a funeral home because it files the certificate, arranges transport and coordinates with the cemetery. Some cemeteries also prefer to work through a funeral home. If you want to do more yourself, call the cemetery office first and ask what documents, permits and container rules it requires before it will schedule an interment.

The Arizona Department of Health Services keeps vital records, and county health offices can often issue copies as well. Your funeral home can usually order certified copies when it files the original, which is the quickest route. You may need several, because banks, insurers and agencies each ask for one. Eligibility rules apply to certified copies, so be ready to show identification and your relationship to the person who died. Check the department's current instructions for forms, fees and processing times.

The cemetery is at 1300 South Buffalo Soldier Trail in Sierra Vista, and the listed phone number is 520-458-7144. Eligibility generally covers veterans discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, along with certain spouses and dependents. Have the veteran's DD-214 ready, plus the death certificate or funeral home details. Call ahead to confirm current eligibility rules, available dates and any charges for family members. For federal burial in Phoenix, the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona is run separately by the VA National Cemetery Administration.

Start with the cemetery office if one is listed. Bisbee Evergreen Cemetery on Old Douglas Road and Hardyville Cemetery on Arizona 95 have no phone number in our records, so contact the city or county, or a local historical society. Bring the full name, approximate death year and any family details you have. Libraries and the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records can also help with obituaries and older records. Unmarked or lost graves are common in historic grounds, so records may be incomplete.

Yes. In Phoenix, Tucson and Yuma, summer afternoons can pass 100 degrees, so many families choose early-morning graveside services to protect older relatives. In Flagstaff, which sits at about 7,000 feet, snow and frozen ground can affect winter scheduling at Flagstaff Calvary Cemetery. Prescott and Payson also see cold weather at higher elevations. Ask the cemetery office how it handles weather delays, whether a tent and seating are provided, and how far ahead it needs notice for opening the grave.