World War II Memorial Opened on April 29, 2004

Some 16 million Americans served in the military during the war years. By 2024, only 100,000 WWII veterans will still be living.

The National World War II Memorial opened in April 2004 on the National Mall, located between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument. (Photo by Author).

Eighteen years have passed since the National World War II Memorial opened in Washington, DC. The seven acre sight provides an intimate setting for a momentous event in American history. A fitting tribute for the global conflict that would come to represent the rapid ascendency of the United States in global affairs. The Greatest Generation left its mark on American and world history in profound ways.

“We are now in the war. We are all in it all the way. Every single man, woman and child is a partner in the most tremendous undertaking of our American history.”
— President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dec. 9, 1941

Some 16 million Americans served in the military during the war years, 1941 until the summer of 1945. The US population was about 136 million in 1941. So, some 11% of the total US population served in the armed forces during the conflict.

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, about 240,000 U.S. World War II veterans were living as of September 2021. About 230 WWII veterans die each day, the losses will accelerate in the coming few years.

A recent passing of note: Lawrence Brooks, a 112-year old WWII veteran passed away in January. Brooks was also the oldest living American male at the time.

The memorial pays tribute to both the industrial might and agricultural abundance of the United States, two factors that were crucial to the Allied war effort around the world. (Photo: R.Stone on Unsplash).

The memorial design is both imposing and understated. A main pool flanked by two sets of columns. One set represents the conflict in Europe, the other represents the conflict in the Pacific and Far East. The approaches to the memorial include two walls depicting iconic WWII scenes in bas relief. The majority of the memorial plaza is sunken from street level to insure unobstructed east-west views along the Mall, from the Lincoln Memorial to the Washington monument.

The memorial was designed by Austrian-American architect Friedrich St. Florian. The memorial was officially dedicated by President George W. Bush on Memorial Day, May 29, 2004.

Aerial view of the National World War II Memorial. The memorial grounds are sunken slightly to preserve the expansive east-west view along the National Mall. (Photo: Library of Congress).

The federal government donated a modest amount ($16 million) to the memorial construction fund. Donations, corporate, nonprofit and private, would cover a vast majority of the $180 million construction cost. Promiment Americans played a key role in raising money for the project. Kansas Sen. Bob Dole, a wounded Army infantry soldier during the war, and actor Tom Hanks were among the prominent supporters and fundraisers.

Each state (48 states in the union during WWII) has a column at the National World War II Memorial, along with American territories. Some US territories in the Pacific, like Guam, were occupied during the war. (Photo by Author).

Allied military personnel in Paris after Japan surrenders in August 1945. (Photo: US Army Signal Corps).