Bronze Plaques Chicago

In Chicago the cemetery that holds the grave decides almost everything about a bronze marker, and the largest system says no. The Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Chicago allow only granite memorials on graves under rules dated January 1, 2024, so we do not offer a bronze grave marker for those cemeteries. Rosehill, Oak Woods, Memorial Park in Skokie and Elmwood in River Grove are Dignity Memorial properties that publish no marker rules online, and Graceland and Bohemian National publish none either, so their offices are the only source of sizes and fees. Illinois law helps where bronze is allowed: a licensed cemetery may not add a penalty or extra charge because you bought the marker from another vendor. We cast the bronze plaque, show its price in US dollars with shipping included, and leave the base and the setting to the cemetery office or a local monument dealer.

The Illinois vendor right and what it covers

The Cemetery Oversight Act (225 ILCS 411), administered by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), sets out consumer rights in Article 35. Item (2) reads: “Consumers have the right to purchase merchandise or services directly from the cemetery authority when available or through a third-party vendor of the consumer’s choice without incurring a penalty or additional charge by the cemetery authority.” IDFPR’s Consumer Bill of Rights brochure adds the condition that matters, that the right holds “as long as the merchandise does not violate the law or the cemetery’s rules.” A licensed cemetery must also give you a dated price list and a copy of its rules, and complaints go to IDFPR on 1-888-RLOVED1.

Not every cemetery is licensed: IDFPR says a family or religious burial ground, a cemetery with no burials in 10 years, or one under three acres may be fully exempt. Whether a religious cemetery is bound by the vendor right has not been confirmed, so ask the cemetery. The statewide picture is on our Illinois page.

Catholic Cemeteries of Chicago allow granite only on graves

The Archdiocese’s cemeteries state it without qualification. Rule 11.B of the rules dated January 1, 2024 reads: “Due to the harsh environmental nature of our area, only memorials constructed from granite are allowed.” A bronze lawn marker cannot go on a grave in this system, wherever it is bought, so we do not offer one there. For granite bought outside, a dealer purchase needs permission, an application and a fee, and online memorials “may be subject to additional fees”. For crypts and niches “the memorial inscription or plaque is included” with the purchase. No fee amounts are printed.

Cast bronze still has a place away from the grave: a bench plaque or a garden plaque at home.

Rosehill, Oak Woods, Memorial Park and Elmwood

Rosehill, Oak Woods, Memorial Park in Skokie and Elmwood in River Grove are Dignity Memorial properties, and none publishes marker rules, sizes or fees online. Dignity Memorial’s national page says markers “can also be purchased elsewhere and installed by your cemetery for a fee” and that “Each cemetery has its own policies” (2026).

The nearest published rulebook from the same operator, Chapel Hill Gardens South in Oak Lawn (January 15, 2013), requires written approval, a description “specifying material, size, inscription, name of manufacturer and style number”, an inspection fee paid in advance from “the fee schedule on file”, and contractors with $1,000,000 liability cover and a $1,000 compliance bond, both waivable. It prints no fee amount and no size. Do not confuse Elmwood in River Grove with Historic Elmwood in Detroit, whose rules are on our Michigan page.

Graceland, Bohemian National and other independents

Graceland Cemetery at 4001 North Clark Street has a Rules and Regulations page that holds only an embedded form, with no memorial text, sizes or fees in readable form; the office is at (773) 525-1105. Bohemian National Cemetery at 5255 North Pulaski Road, founded in 1877 by Chicago’s Czech community, publishes no memorial rules or fees; its number is 773-539-8442. For both, ask in writing for the memorial rules, the bronze size for your space, the base, who sets the marker, and the dated price list.

Chicago cemeteries at a glance

Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery and veterans’ graves

At Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, as in every VA national cemetery, the cemetery orders a government headstone or marker from the next of kin’s inscription details and its staff set it at no cost. A private bronze marker is not the route there, and the Illinois Veterans Home cemetery says “Erection of private monuments shall not be permitted.”

A private cemetery is different. If a veteran rests in a Chicago area private cemetery whose rules allow bronze, the family can order its own marker with emblems of service, and for service on or after April 6, 1917 can apply on VA Form 40-1330M for a bronze medallion to fix to a privately purchased marker instead of receiving a government one. In a private cemetery “all placement costs are at private expense”. More on veteran bronze grave markers.

What we supply for a Chicago grave

No Chicago operator publishes a bronze grave size, so the practical reference is the national flat marker: 24 by 12 inches, the size of the VA bronze marker. Ours is cast to order at that size for $1,697.45, shipping included, and a 20 by 10 inch cremation marker is $1,407.68. For a private columbarium that accepts outside plates, the 8 1/2 by 5 1/2 inch niche size is $540.98.

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 Chicago, 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 Chicago 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

Can I put a bronze marker on a grave at a Catholic cemetery in Chicago?

No. The Archdiocese’s rules dated January 1, 2024 allow only granite memorials on graves, and crypt and niche plaques come with the purchase.

Can an Illinois cemetery charge me extra because I bought the marker online?

A licensed cemetery may not add a penalty or additional charge because you bought from a third party vendor, provided the marker meets the law and the cemetery’s rules.

What does Rosehill or Oak Woods charge to set a bronze marker?

Neither publishes a fee. Both are Dignity Memorial properties, so ask the office for its inspection fee schedule and bronze specification sheet.

Can a private bronze marker be placed at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery?

No. In VA national cemeteries the cemetery orders and sets a government headstone or marker.

What size bronze marker should I order for a Chicago lawn grave?

Get the size in writing from the cemetery, because no Chicago operator publishes one online. The common national reference is 24 by 12 inches, which we cast to order, and cremation spaces often take 20 by 10 inches or smaller.