Online Registry Honors World War II Generation
Feb 26 2008
More than 16 million Americans served in uniform during the Second World War, more than 400,000 lost their lives, and millions more supported the war effort on the home front.
The World War II Memorial that honors their service and sacrifice was dedicated in Washington, D.C. in May 2004. While building the memorial, the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) introduced an online World War II Registry to document the names of those who participated in history’s largest and most devastating war. The registry is accessible through ABMC’s World War II Memorial Web site at www.wwiimemorial.com. Any American that served in the armed forces or contributed to the war effort on the home front, whether in factories and shipyards or farms and neighborhoods, is eligible.
The registry contains more than two million records, and the public submitted more than 1.5 million of the entries. The database also includes National Archives and Records Administration lists of those killed in service during the war, and the names of those buried in ABMC overseas cemeteries or listed on its Tablets of the Missing.
There is no charge to place a name in the Registry. Registry entries include such information as name, branch of service, hometown, and a brief narrative of the individual’s wartime service. A photo can be submitted to personalize the record. Individuals can be enrolled through the memorial Web site or by calling toll free to 1-800-639-4992. The database is also accessible — for search only — at the World War II Memorial site on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
