June 19, 2013

Arlington Cemetery debuts new interactive map

BY: AP Staff Writer OCTOBER 22, 2012 | MODIFIED: OCTOBER 22, 2012 AT 7:30 PM
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Photo -   Kathryn Condon, executive director, Army National Military Cemeteries, left, listens as Patrick Hallihan, Superintendent of Arlington National Cemetery, holds up old map as an example of what had been used by the cemetery, during a news conference in Washington, Monday, Oct. 22, 2012 to present the ANC Explorer application for the cemetery. Arlington National Cemetery plans to make available to the public the detailed geospatial database it has developed over several years while overhauling its records and responding to reports of misidentified remains. The database will be available over the Internet and through a mobile phone app that visitors to the cemetery can take with them to find a specific gave anywhere in the cemetery. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Kathryn Condon, executive director, Army National Military Cemeteries, left, listens as Patrick Hallihan, Superintendent of Arlington National Cemetery, holds up old map as an example of what had been used by the cemetery, during a news conference in Washington, Monday, Oct. 22, 2012 to present the ANC Explorer application for the cemetery. Arlington National Cemetery plans to make available to the public the detailed geospatial database it has developed over several years while overhauling its records and responding to reports of misidentified remains. The database will be available over the Internet and through a mobile phone app that visitors to the cemetery can take with them to find a specific gave anywhere in the cemetery. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A massive electronic database detailing the burial sites of hundreds of thousands of people at Arlington National Cemetery is now accessible to the public.

Cemetery officials built the database over the last two years to verify the accuracy of their records in the wake of reports of misidentified graves. Prior to 2010 the cemetery used paper records.

On Monday, the cemetery debuted an interactive map available through its website and through a free smartphone app. It uses geospatial technology to hone in on specific graves and can also be searched by name.

Officials say the new app makes it easier for people walking the cemetery to locate a loved one's burial place as well as some of the cemetery's notable graves.

The cemetery hosts more than 4 million visitors annually.

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