Issues: Museums and Memorials
USS Arizona Memorial (Pearl Harbor)
Shortly before 8:00 am on the morning of December 7, 1941, the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the 130 vessels docked at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Additionally, attacks occurred at other military installations in Hawaii: Hickam, Wheeler, and Bellows airfields, Ewa Marine Corps air station, Kaneohe Bay Naval Air Station, and Schofield Barracks.
Among the air and sea vessels to be destroyed were the USS Oklahoma, USS California, USS West Virginia, USS Maryland, USS Pennsylvania, USS Tennessee, USS Nevada and the USS Utah. The largest number of deaths occurred when the USS Arizona sunk, trapping 1,177 crew members.
The idea for constructing a memorial for those who died at Pearl Harbor grew out of a desire to honor those who had died. Although suggestions for such a memorial began in 1943, it was not until 1949 (when the Territory of Hawaii established the Pacific Memorial Commission) that the first steps were taken toward this end.
Initially, the memorial began as a flagpole erected over the sunken USS Arizona at the order of Admiral Arthur Radford. Subsequently, a commemorative plaque was placed at the base of this flagpole. Then, in 1958, President Eisenhower approved the creation of an official memorial (designed by Alfred Preis), which was completed in 1961 and dedicated in 1962.
The Memorial today stands above the sunken USS Arizona. The 184-foot long Memorial spans the mid-portion of the ship. The Memorial consists of three main sections: 1) the entry and assembly rooms; 2) a central area designed for ceremonies and general observations; and 3) the shrine room, where the names of those killed on the USS Arizona are engraved on the marble wall. While the Memorial is constructed above the USS Arizona, the Memorial has come to commemorate all military personnel killed in the Pearl Harbor attack.
