Korean War Veterans Memorial
Korean War Veterans Memorial | |
U.S. National Memorial | |
Location | SE of Lincoln Memorial, off Independence Ave., Washington, D.C. |
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Coordinates | 38°53′16″N 77°2′50″W / 38.88778°N 77.04722°W |
Area | 2.20 acres (0.89 ha) |
Visitation | 3,214,467 (2005) |
Website | Korean War Veterans Memorial |
NRHP reference No. | 01000273[1] |
Added to NRHP | July 27, 1995 |
The Korean War Veterans Memorial is located in Washington, D.C.'s West Potomac Park, southeast of the Lincoln Memorial and just south of the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall. It memorializes those who served in the Korean War (1950–1953). The national memorial was dedicated in 1995. It includes 19 statues representing U.S. military personnel in action. In 2022, the memorial was expanded to include a granite memorial wall, engraved with the names of U.S. military personnel (and South Koreans embedded in U.S. military units) who died in the war.
History
The Korean War Veterans Memorial was confirmed by the
The initial design competition was won in 1986 by a team of four architects and landscape architects from
President
Design and construction
The Mural Wall
The main memorial is in the form of a triangle intersecting a circle. Walls: 164 feet (50 m) long, 8 inches (200 mm) thick; more than 100 tons of highly polished "Academy Black" granite from California: more than 2,500 photographic, archival images representing the land, sea, and air troops who supported those who fought in the war are sandblasted onto the wall. The Mural was created by Louis Nelson, with photographic images sandblasted into it depicting soldiers, equipment and people involved in the war. When reflected on the wall, there appear to be 38 soldiers, 38 months, and it is also representing the 38th parallel that separated the North and South Korea.[5]
The Column
Within the walled triangle are 19
United Nations Wall
To the north of the statues and path is the United Nations Wall, a low wall listing the 22 member states of the United Nations (including the U.S. and South Korea) that, as part of the United Nations Command, contributed troops or provided medical support.[9]
Pool of Remembrance
The circle contains the Pool of Remembrance, a shallow pool 30 feet (9 m) in diameter lined with black granite and surrounded by a grove of linden trees with benches. The trees are shaped to create a barrel effect, which allows sunlight to reflect on the pool.[10] Inscriptions list the numbers killed, wounded, missing in action, and held as prisoners of war, and a nearby plaque is inscribed: "Our nation honors her sons and daughters who answered the call to defend a country they never knew and a people they never met." Additionally, right next to the numbers of American soldiers are those of the United Nations troops in the same categories. In the south side of the memorial, there are three bushes of the Rose of Sharon hibiscus plant, South Korea's national flower.
A further granite wall bears the simple message, inlaid in silver: "Freedom Is Not Free."
Wall of Remembrance
Around 2010, the Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation (KWVMF) began to lobby Congress to add to the existing memorial a wall listing the names of U.S. servicemembers who died in the Korean War.[11] The NPS opposed the proposal;[11] the director of the NPS capital region testified before a House committee that "As the Vietnam Veterans Memorial experience showed, there is not always agreement on those names to be included and those names that are not, and this has led to public contention and controversy, ... Choosing some names and omitting others causes a place of solace to become a source of hurt."[12] In 2016 Congress passed the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembrance Act; the act requires the NPS to work with the KWVMF to add a "list of names of members of the Armed Forces of the United States who died in the Korean War, as determined by the Secretary of Defense."[13]
In 2021, portions of the memorial were closed for construction of the Wall of Remembrance and simultaneous rehabilitation work on the rest of the memorial.[14] In summer 2022, the Wall of Remembrance, a series of long black granite slabs, was unveiled at a re-dedication ceremony.[11] The ceremony took place on July 27, 2022, the 69th anniversary of the Armistice.[15]
The wall lists the names of 36,634 Americans,
On 11 January 2023, South Korean
Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation's Maintenance Fund
On October 12, 2015, Samsung Electronics donated $1 million to the Korean War Memorial Foundation. The memorial used the donation for maintenance. According to William Weber, the chairman of the memorial foundation, "Most of the grouting need to be treated twice a year. And there isn't enough for all of that upkeep." In addition, on October 16, Samsung helped clean the memorial ground as part of the company's national day of service.[20]
Troop statistics
Engraved on granite blocks near the water pool at the east end of the monument are the casualty statistics for the soldiers who fought in the war.
- Dead—United States:
- 54,246 (As of 2021, Worldwide - Korea Theater: 36,574, Non-Korea Theater: 17,672),[21]
- Revised 36,574 (As of 2021, Only in Korea Theater: Battle Deaths: 33,739, Other Deaths: 2,835)[22][23][24][25]
- Revised 36,634 (As of July 2022, Only in Korea Theater),[26][27][28][29][30] United Nations: 4,216 (Corrected)[31][32]
- Wounded—United States: 103,284, United Nations: 11,297 (Corrected)[33]
- Captured United States: 7,140, United Nations: 1,367 (Corrected)[34]
- Missing— United States: 8,177,[35][36] United Nations: 1,801 (Corrected)[37]
United States postage stamp court case
On February 25, 2010, the
In 2002, amateur photographer and retired Marine John Alli was paid $1,500 for the use of one of his photographs of the memorial on a snowy day for the stamp,[39] which sold more than $17 million worth of stamps. In 2006, sculptor Frank Gaylord enlisted Fish & Richardson to make a claim that the Postal Service had violated his intellectual property rights to the sculpture and therefore he should have been compensated. The Postal Service argued that Gaylord was not the sole sculptor (saying he had received advice from federal sources, who recommended that the uniforms appear more in the wind) and also that the sculpture was actually architecture. Gaylord won all of his arguments in the lower court except for one—the court ruled the photo was fair use and thus he was not entitled to compensation.[40] Gaylord challenged the fair-use ruling and won the case on appeal.[38]
Gaylord had sought compensation of 10 percent of the sales. Gaylord's original commission was $775,000.[citation needed] [41] On April 22, 2011, the US Court of Federal Claims awarded Gaylord $5,000.[42] On appeal, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated the order and remanded the case back to the US Court of Federal Claims. On September 20, 2013, the US Court of Federal Claims awarded Gaylord $684,844.94 in damages, including interest.[43]
See also
- United States in the Korean War
- List of Korean War memorials
- List of national memorials of the United States
- Iron Mike
- List of public art in Washington, D.C., Ward 2
- Architecture of Washington, D.C.
Citations
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ "U.S. Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, Korean War Memorial". Nab.usace.army.mil. Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. Retrieved 2012-12-17.
- ^ "Eliza Pennypacker appointed head of the Department of Landscape Architecture | Penn State University". www.psu.edu. Retrieved 2022-12-04.
- ^ A March to Remember Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine, Benjamin Forgey, The Washington Post , 22 July 1995 (hosted by www.louisnelson.com)
- ^ "Korean War Memorial". American Battle Monuments Commission. Korean War Memorial. Archived from the original on 7 October 2015. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
- ^ "Korean War Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C". Nab.usace.army.mil. Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. Retrieved 2012-12-17.
- ^ Rein, Lisa (February 10, 2015). "Court upholds $540,000 judgment against USPS for Korean War stamp". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-02-06.
- ^ "U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Baltimore District – Projects – Korean War Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C". Nab.usace.army.mil. Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. Retrieved 2012-12-17.
- ^ Korean War Veterans Memorial: United Nations Wall, National Park Service.
- ^ "Korean War Veterans Memorial". American Battle Monuments Commission. Archived from the original on 2013-07-03. Retrieved 2013-06-21.
- ^ a b c d e f g Dave Philipps, A Korean War Wall of Remembrance Set Hundreds of Errors in Stone, New York Times (January 9, 2023).
- ^ Richard Simon, Proposal for wall at Korean War memorial runs into opposition, Los Angeles Times (October 4, 2011).
- ^ Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembrance Act, Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation.
- ^ Construction to begin on the Wall of Remembrance at the Korean War Veterans Memorial, National Park Service (March 15, 2021)
- ^ a b c Wall of Remembrance dedicated at Korean War Memorial, KOLO-TV (July 27, 2022).
- ^ The Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembranc
- ^ Michael Hall, The Korean War Memorial’s New Wall of Remembrance Appears to Forget Hundreds of U.S. Casualties, Texas Monthly (August 2022).
- ^ A Korean War Wall of Remembrance Set Hundreds of Errors in Stone
- ^ 워싱턴 '추모의 벽' 전사자 명단 오류와 관련하여 다음과 같이 설명드립니다
- ^ Shane, Leo (12 October 2015). "Korean War Veterans Memorial Gets $1M Donation from Samsung". Military Times. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
- MIA. The more commonly used number–36,516–only includes the deaths that occurred as a direct result of the Korean War.
- ^ 'Fact Sheet: America's Wars' - U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, Washington D.C.
- ^ "Defense Casualty Analysis System". Archived from the original on 2013-02-22. Retrieved 2019-09-11.
- ^ "Wall of Remembrance". Archived from the original on September 24, 2019. Retrieved Sep 11, 2019.
- ^ "How Many Americans Died In Korea?". www.cbsnews.com. 5 June 2000. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved Sep 11, 2019.
- ^ As of Jul 2022, according to the list of Wall of Remembrance in the Korean War Veterans Memorial, killed soldiers were 36,634, But this figure fluctuate depending on the ongoing correction of list.
- ^ The Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembranc
- ^ 추모의 벽’ 준공…6·25전사 미군·카투사 4만여명 이름 각인
- ^ A Korean War Wall of Remembrance Set Hundreds of Errors in Stone
- ^ 워싱턴 '추모의 벽' 전사자 명단 오류와 관련하여 다음과 같이 설명드립니다
- ^ Military support 15 countries (except US): killed 4,210 / Medical support 5 countries: 6 killed
- ^ The number of ROK Forces in the war is 137,899 according to South Korean Ministry of National DefenseArchived 2013-11-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Michael J. Varhola, The Korean War 1950-1953, Savas Publishing Company 2000, USA. Library of Congress Card Number: 00-104152.
- ^ "Allied Forces in the Korean War". jackiewhiting.net/USHistory/ColdWar/Coalition.htm. Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
- ^ 664 is the current number defined as living missing personnel of the end of the war.
- ^ "As of June 2015 the estimated number of unaccounted for/body unidentified service people is 7,850" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2018. Retrieved Sep 11, 2019.
- ^ "Allied Forces in the Korean". jackiewhiting.net/USHistory/ColdWar/Coalition.htm. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
- ^ a b "An 85-Year-Old Sculptor vs. The Government – amlawdaily – February 25, 2010". Amlawdaily.typepad.com. Archived from the original on 2010-03-01. Retrieved 2012-12-17.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-11. Retrieved 2010-03-01.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Postage Stamp Depicting Portion of Korean War Veterans Memorial Not Fair Use of Sculpture" Archived 2012-07-19 at archive.today, Hendricks & Lewis, Stacia Lay, February 26, 2010
- ^ Postal Service must pay sculptor – Bloomberg News (via Chicago Sun-Times) – February 27, 2010 [dead link]
- ^ Mike Doyle (April 25, 2011). "Korean War memorial sculptor wins and loses at the same time". McClatchy. Archived from the original on August 12, 2011. Retrieved April 28, 2011.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-04-19. Retrieved 2014-04-18.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
General bibliography
- Korean War Vererans Memorial, National Park Service leaflet, GPO:2204—304-337/00178
- The National Parks: Index 2001–2003. Washington: U.S. Department of the Interior.
External links
- Official NPS website: Korean War Veterans Memorial
- Trust for the National Mall: Korean War Memorial
- 15 photos at "Sites of Memory"
- Evocative photo of the Memorial in weather worthy of waterproof clothing
- View of the memorial's statues, with the Lincoln Memorial in the background Archived 2005-03-07 at the Wayback Machine
- Smithsonian Database on the Memorial
- War Memorial of Korea
- Gaylord vs. U.S., United States Court of Federal Claims, April 22, 2011
- Korean War Veterans Memorial Photo Collection