Bronze Plaques Washington State

Washington law lets every cemetery write its own marker rules and requires it to keep them in print at the office, so in Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane the first step is always the same: ask for the written rules. No Washington statute guarantees an outside marker or caps a setting fee. What the state does have is unusually clear published material from two operators. The Associated Catholic Cemeteries in the Seattle area print 2026 setting and care fees and a bronze alloy rule, and the Fairmount Memorial Association in Spokane says in writing that owners may obtain markers from other sources and lists bronze sizes. This page covers both in full, the Dignity Memorial and NorthStar parks that publish nothing, and the veterans cemeteries where private markers do not go. We cast the bronze plaque with shipping included in its US dollar price; the granite foundation and the setting are arranged locally.

RCW 68.20 and 68.40: rules in print, care money on graves

Under RCW 68.20.062 a cemetery “may regulate the uniformity, class, and kind of all markers, monuments, and other structures”, and under 68.20.063 it “may regulate or prohibit the erection of monuments, markers, effigies, and structures within any portion of the cemetery.” RCW 68.20.070 requires those rules to be “plainly printed or typewritten and maintained” and “subject to inspection in the office of the cemetery authority.” No Washington law on outside markers or setting fees was found. Endowment care under RCW 68.40.010 is “Ten percent of the gross sales price for each grave, niche, or crypt”, with nothing on markers.

Seattle’s Catholic cemeteries: the 2026 price list

The Associated Catholic Cemeteries (ACC) of the Archdiocese of Seattle, covering Calvary, Gethsemane, Holyrood and St. Patrick, publish “Prices Effective January 1, 2026”, and “All memorials must have prior written approval by the cemetery superintendent.”

For one outside bronze on granite up to 32×20, the published cemetery side is setting $560 plus care $365 (2026), before the foundation and a supervisory fee whose amount is not printed.

The ACC memorialization policy and its alloy rule

The Memorialization Policy, revised April 20, 2023, says “Granite is the only material permitted for use as a foundation for bronze memorials”, sets “The minimum size memorial for standard full body burial sections in any ACC cemetery is 28 x 16”, and requires flush memorials and foundations up to 44 inches long to be at least 3 inches thick. Outside installers pay setting, care and the supervisory fee and carry at least $1,000,000 liability insurance, and the superintendent may postpone placement for “wet or muddy soil”, an unsettled grave or “frozen soil.”

The policy also prints an alloy: bronze of not less than 87 percent copper and 5 percent tin, and not more than 5 percent zinc and 2 percent lead. Our LG2 bronze is 85 percent copper and 5 percent lead, so it differs from ACC’s written specification. We publish the alloy openly and can state it on a certificate, but that certificate describes what the plaque is; it is not evidence that ACC will accept it. Before ordering for Calvary, Gethsemane or Holyrood, the family must ask the superintendent in writing whether a plaque of this alloy will be approved, and order only if the answer is yes.

St. Patrick in Kent: no bronze on the lawn

At St. Patrick Cemetery in Kent the ACC policy says bronze is not permitted for flush lawn memorials, vases or adornments, and veterans’ memorials there must be 24×12 flush granite only. We do not offer a bronze grave marker for St. Patrick.

Washelli, Acacia, Sunset Hills and other Seattle area parks

Evergreen Washelli and Acacia Memorial Park are now Dignity Memorial (SCI) locations; their own domains redirect to Dignity pages that could not be read, and no marker rules were found for either, so do not assume they accept outside bronze. Sunset Hills in Bellevue did not respond. For Lake View on Capitol Hill no reliable published rules were found; ask at the cemetery office. At any of them, RCW 68.20.070 entitles you to inspect the printed rules, so ask for the bronze size, base and setting fee in writing.

Tacoma: Mountain View and Tahoma National Cemetery

Mountain View Memorial Park in Lakewood, a NorthStar property serving Tacoma, offers “Flat Bronze and Granite Markers” that “Sit level with the ground” but publishes no outside marker rules or prices. No City of Tacoma cemetery was found; the Tacoma and New Tacoma cemeteries belong to the Tacoma Cemetery Association and Oakwood Hill is private. Ask each office directly.

Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent (page updated September 18, 2026) has added more than 26,000 columbarium niches in two expansions. As in every VA national cemetery, the cemetery orders and sets the government marker or niche cover, so a private bronze plate is not the route there.

Spokane: Fairmount Memorial Association and Medical Lake

The Fairmount Memorial Association runs seven cemeteries, including Fairmount Memorial Park, Greenwood, Riverside and Spokane Memorial Gardens. Rule 52 says “Property owners may also obtain markers and monuments from other sources”, with “a reasonable charge” for installation or, if someone else installs, for “layout plans, supervision and inspection”; the amounts are not online. The Memorial Regulations Supplement of December 13, 2013 sets single bronze at “24”x 12″ or 13″ placed on granite foundation 32″x 20″”, companions “36”x 12″ or 13″” on 44″x 20″, cremation and infant “Bronze 16″x 8″”, Innocents Lawn children “Bronze–24″x 12″”, a 20″x 10″ minimum small marker for extra remains in a full grave, and a 32″x 20″ single maximum including border at Fairmount Memorial Park.

The Washington State Veterans Cemetery at Medical Lake accepts VA markers only: “No privately procured markers or monuments will be used” (WDVA Policy 510.400, May 10, 2024), and its staff set all markers.

What we supply for a Washington grave

Spokane is the cleanest fit: FMA’s 24 by 12 inch bronze single takes our plaque cast to order at $1,697.45, shipping included, and its 16 by 8 and 20 by 10 inch sizes are in the designer at $978.39 and $1,407.68. The 24 by 13 inch option and companions are quoted on request. In the Seattle Catholic cemeteries the size would suit a 28 by 16 granite foundation, but the alloy question above comes first.

We supply the bronze. Every plaque is cast in solid LG2 statuary bronze (85 percent copper, 5 percent tin, 5 percent zinc, 5 percent lead) with raised polished lettering on a textured background, a hand applied color and a clear protective coating. Cemetery markers are cast with lugs and fitted with 3/8 inch brass all thread studs, nuts and washers for bolting to a granite or concrete base; columbarium plates use 1/4 inch fittings. We publish the alloy openly and can supply a certificate of authenticity stating it, so a cemetery that has its own alloy rule can check our figures against it before you order; a few cemeteries specify a higher copper or lower lead content than LG2, and where a page knows of one it says so. The granite or concrete base and the setting are arranged through the cemetery office or a local monument dealer; we do not pour bases or install.

Our bronze plaque prices for Washington, shipping included

Here is what the plaque costs from us. These are the design tool’s own prices on 21 October 2026 for a plain rectangle with the default border and background, in US dollars, and delivery anywhere in Washington is already included in each one.

The cemetery fees described above are paid to the cemetery office and are not part of these prices, so the full cost of a finished marker is our plaque price plus the cemetery’s setting, permit or foundation charges. Enter your cemetery’s size in the design tool and it shows the price for that exact size straight away.

How to order

1. Ask the cemetery office for its written marker rules: the size it allows for your space, the base it requires, who may set the marker and the fee. Most offices email the sheet the same day, and several states require the cemetery to keep it in print for you.
2. Open the free design tool, pick the shape and type the width and height in inches. The price in US dollars updates as you go, shipping to any address in the continental United States included.
3. Add the names, dates and wording, choose a border and background, and add an emblem, motif or photo if you want one. Choose lugs with studs if the plaque will be bolted to a granite or concrete base, or a flat back for adhesive mounting on a wall or niche.
4. Save the design and order it from My Account. We send a written proof you can forward to the cemetery for approval, and nothing is cast until you approve it. Need the full 24 by 12 inch marker size? Tell us when you order; it is cast to order at the same price as the 22 1/16 by 12 inch size in the tool.

Allow six to eight weeks from payment to delivery. Casting, hand finishing and shipping from our foundry take most of that time, and we send a free written proof before anything is cast. If your cemetery sets markers only in certain months, order early enough for its next installation window.

Frequently asked questions

Does Washington law guarantee I can bring in my own bronze marker?

No. RCW 68.20 lets each cemetery regulate or prohibit markers and requires its rules to be printed and open to inspection at the office. Read those rules before ordering.

What do the Seattle Catholic cemeteries charge to set a bronze marker?

Under prices effective January 1, 2026, setting is $435 up to 20×10 and $560 for 24×12, 28×16 or 32×20, plus a $365 Memorial Care Fund charge up to 32×20.

Will your plaque be accepted at Calvary, Gethsemane or Holyrood?

Only the superintendent can say. ACC’s written policy asks for at least 87 percent copper and no more than 2 percent lead, and our LG2 bronze is 85 percent copper and 5 percent lead, so it differs from that specification. Ask the office in writing before you order.

Can I order a bronze marker for a Spokane cemetery?

Yes, at the Fairmount Memorial Association’s cemeteries owners may obtain markers from other sources. Single bronze is 24 by 12 or 13 inches on a 32 by 20 granite foundation, and the cemetery charges for installation or for layout, supervision and inspection.

Can a private marker go at Tahoma or the Medical Lake veterans cemetery?

No. Tahoma National Cemetery orders and sets government markers, and the state cemetery at Medical Lake uses only VA markers under its May 10, 2024 policy.