National memorial is a designation in the United States for an officially recognized area that memorializes a historic person or event.^[1] As of September 2020^[update] the National Park Service (NPS), an agency of the Department of the Interior, owns and administers thirty-one memorials as official units and provides assistance for five more, known as affiliated areas, that are operated by other organizations.^[2] Congress has also designated twenty-two additional independently operated sites as national memorials. Another five memorials have been authorized and are in the planning stage. Memorials need not be located on a site directly related to the subject,^[3] and many, such as the Lincoln Memorial, do not have the word "national" in their titles. There is a degree of overlap in development of some areas designated as memorials, monuments, and historic sites, and their characterization is not always consistent with their names, such as whether the site is closely associated with whom it memorializes.^[4]

The earliest and perhaps most recognizable is the uniquely designated Washington Monument, which was completed in 1884 and transferred to the NPS in 1933. The most recently established is the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial, dedicated in 2020. The Pearl Harbor National Memorial was created out of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument in 2019 and was previously just the USS Arizona Memorial. The NPS national memorials are in 15 states and the District of Columbia. Washington, D.C., has the most, twelve, followed by Pennsylvania and New York, each with three. The affiliated areas are in four states (two additional beyond those with NPS memorials) and the Northern Mariana Islands, while the other sites are in nine states (five additional), the District of Columbia, and Midway Atoll. Creation of new memorials in Washington, D.C. is governed by the Commemorative Works Act, while outside the District there are no systematic regulations.^[5]

Among the NPS national memorials and affiliated areas, ten celebrate US presidents, eleven recognize other historic figures, six commemorate wars, five memorialize disasters, and five represent early exploration. Eleven of the twenty-two non-NPS memorials commemorate wars or veterans, another ten represent groups of people who died for related reasons, and one relates to Native American history. Several major war memorials are located on or near the National Mall, contributing to the national identity.^[6][7] The historic areas within the National Park System are automatically listed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[8]

"National Memorial" is omitted below in the names of sites that include it; others may separate the two words or just use "Memorial", and there is also one international memorial included. Private and other organizations may use the name "national memorial" (such as George Washington Masonic National Memorial and National Memorial for Peace and Justice) but they are not officially designated by the federal government, and are not listed here, as they are not created pursuant to the statutory scheme.^[9]

The National Park Service manages 31 national memorials as official units.^[10] It also oversees two more national memorials as part of other units, listed with the other national memorials. A few additional units, including Fort McHenry National Monument, include "national memorial" in their enabling legislation,^[11] but are not otherwise called that and are thus not listed here.

More information Name, Image ...

Name	Image	Location	Date established[12]	Area[12][13]	Description
Arkansas Post		Arkansas 34.02°N 91.35°W / 34.02; -91.35 (Arkansas Post)	July 6, 1960	757.51 acres (3.0655 km2)	Henri de Tonti established the Arkansas Post in 1686 as the first European trading post in the Mississippi River Valley as part of French Louisiana. It grew into a small settlement and was the site of skirmishes with Native Americans before becoming part of New Spain in 1763 and the US in 1803 with the Louisiana Purchase. A Civil War battle was won by the Union there in 1863. Visitors can tour a reconstructed fort and archaeological remains of Native American, European, and American settlements.[14]
Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial		Virginia 38.881°N 77.073°W / 38.881; -77.073 (Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial)	June 25, 1955	28.08 acres (0.1136 km2)	This mansion was built by George Washington's adopted son George Washington Parke Custis, partially as a memorial to Washington. After Custis's death it was managed by his son-in-law Robert E. Lee, who became commander of the Confederate States Army. The US government seized it during the Civil War and established Arlington National Cemetery around it. The house and grounds have been restored with pre-war decor and artifacts of the Custis and Lee families.[15]
Chamizal		Texas 31.77°N 106.45°W / 31.77; -106.45 (Chamizal)	February 4, 1974	54.90 acres (0.2222 km2)	Northward shifts in the Rio Grande led to a dispute over the Mexico–United States border between El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez. Summits and tribunals beginning in 1909 failed to resolve the controversy until a 1964 settlement transferred land on both sides of a rechanneled river. The museum and park next to the Bridge of the Americas checkpoint commemorate the resolution and international diplomacy.[16]
Coronado		Arizona 31.34°N 110.25°W / 31.34; -110.25 (Coronado)	November 5, 1952	4,830.22 acres (19.5472 km2)	Francisco Vázquez de Coronado led the first European exploration of the Southwest, from Arizona to Kansas, finding the Grand Canyon. The site on the Mexican border, where Coronado entered what is now the US, includes a cave and hiking trails through ridges and canyons.[17]
De Soto		Florida 27.52°N 82.64°W / 27.52; -82.64 (De Soto)	March 11, 1948	30 acres (0.12 km2)	Hernando de Soto led the first European exploration of the Southeast, searching for gold while trading and fighting with various Native American tribes before his death along the Mississippi River in 1542. The memorial at the 1539 landing site on Tampa Bay has a reconstructed camp, reenactment events, historic artifacts, and waterfront trails.[18]
Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial		District of Columbia 38.89°N 77.02°W / 38.89; -77.02 (Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial)	September 17, 2020	3.39 acres (0.0137 km2)	Dwight D. Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during World War II and President of the United States in the 1950s. His accomplishments included enforcing school integration, creating NASA and the Interstate Highway System, and ending the Korean War. The memorial features stacked blocks showing quotations; sculptures depicting Eisenhower as a boy, general, and president; and a steel tapestry with an abstract depiction of Pointe du Hoc, a site of D-Day.[19][20]
Federal Hall		New York 40.707°N 74.010°W / 40.707; -74.010 (Federal Hall)	August 11, 1955	0.45 acres (0.0018 km2)	This neoclassical building on Wall Street, originally the Port of New York Custom House, stands at the site of the first US Capitol building. The original Federal style building was the site of George Washington's inauguration, the 1st United States Congress, and previously the Congress of the Confederation.[21]
Flight 93		Pennsylvania 40.055°N 78.901°W / 40.055; -78.901 (Flight 93)	September 10, 2011	2,319.96 acres (9.3885 km2)	The fourth airplane hijacked in the September 11, 2001, attacks, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in a field in southwest Pennsylvania after the passengers fought back against the terrorists, preventing a further attack at the capital. The memorial on the site has a white granite wall engraved with the names of the 40 victims, a 93 ft (28 m)-tall Tower of Voices with 40 wind chimes, and a visitor center.[22]
Fort Caroline		Florida 30.386°N 81.498°W / 30.386; -81.498 (Fort Caroline)	January 16, 1953	138.39 acres (0.5600 km2)	Around 200 French Huguenots founded Fort Caroline (named after King Charles IX) as a refuge in French Florida in 1685. A year later the Spanish founded St. Augustine nearby and attacked and massacred the settlers at Fort Caroline to take unified control of the region. The current site within the Timucuan Preserve has a reconstructed fort with hiking trails, a visitor center, and monument to the executed leader Jean Ribault.[23]
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial		District of Columbia 38.883°N 77.043°W / 38.883; -77.043 (Franklin Delano Roosevelt)	May 2, 1997	8.14 acres (0.0329 km2)	Franklin D. Roosevelt was the United States' longest-serving president, leading the country during a period of enormous national challenges. Four sections of waterfalls and pools represent Roosevelt's terms in office, when he instituted the New Deal to modernize the economy during the Great Depression and unified the country during World War II. Bronze statues of Roosevelt, his wife Eleanor, his dog Fala, and scenes of period Americans stand between stone walls engraved with notable quotations.[24]
General Grant		New York 40.813°N 73.963°W / 40.813; -73.963 (General Grant)	May 1, 1959	0.76 acres (0.0031 km2)	Ulysses S. Grant was general of the Union Army and led several victories in Civil War battles before forcing surrender of Lee's Confederacy. He served two terms as president of the United States, overseeing Reconstruction and civil rights, government reform, and relations with Native Americans. Grant's Tomb in Upper Manhattan is his and his wife's resting place, designed after the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.[25]
Hamilton Grange		New York 40.821°N 73.947°W / 40.821; -73.947 (Hamilton Grange)	November 19, 1988	1.04 acres (0.0042 km2)	Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father who promoted adoption of the Constitution and served as the first Secretary of the Treasury to establish the nation's economic and political system. He lived in this mansion in Harlem for the last two years of his life before being killed in a duel, and his widow lived there for 29 more years. It has been relocated in the vicinity twice for preservation and restoration and now hosts tours.[26]
Johnstown Flood		Pennsylvania 40.350°N 78.771°W / 40.350; -78.771 (Johnstown Flood)	August 31, 1964	177.76 acres (0.7194 km2)	When the South Fork Dam catastrophically failed in 1889, the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, was flooded and more than 2,200 people died, making the flood now the third-deadliest event in the US. The memorial at the site of the dam remains features a visitor center, short hiking trails, and a historic clubhouse.[27]
Korean War Veterans Memorial		District of Columbia 38.888°N 77.048°W / 38.888; -77.048 (Korean War Veterans)	July 27, 1995	1.56 acres (0.0063 km2)	The US led United Nations forces in the Korean War from 1950 to 1953 defending South Korea against North Korea as part of the Cold War. Of the over 300,000 US servicemembers, more than 36,000 died in the war that ended in a stalemate. The memorial includes a black granite wall etched with images of soldiers, 19 statues of a platoon on patrol, and the Pool of Remembrance that reflects the surrounding linden trees.[28]
Lincoln Boyhood		Indiana 38.113°N 86.996°W / 38.113; -86.996 (Lincoln Boyhood)	February 19, 1962	199.65 acres (0.8080 km2)	Abraham Lincoln moved with his family from Kentucky to forested Southern Indiana in 1816 and lived there from age 7 to 21. He worked on his family's farm and taught himself with little formal schooling during these formative years. His mother died and is buried here. A living museum reenacts a period farm at a reconstructed homestead near the original home's foundation and a sculpted limestone memorial building.[29]
Lincoln Memorial		District of Columbia 38.889°N 77.050°W / 38.889; -77.050 (Lincoln Memorial)	May 30, 1922	7.29 acres (0.0295 km2)	Abraham Lincoln led the Union during the Civil War, bringing back together a divided nation and abolishing slavery before being assassinated shortly after the end of the war. A 30 ft (9.1 m)-tall statue of a seated Lincoln sits in this grand temple overlooking the National Mall toward the Capitol. Inside walls are inscribed with the text of his second inaugural address and the Gettysburg Address. Thirty-six Doric columns that represent the states of the Union in 1865 support an entablature whose frieze is inscribed with the names of the 48 states at the time of construction in 1922.[30]
Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac		District of Columbia 38.877°N 77.050°W / 38.877; -77.050 (Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac)	September 27, 1974	17.00 acres (0.0688 km2)	Lyndon B. Johnson's presidency saw passage of Great Society legislation that expanded health care access through Medicare and Medicaid, established civil and voting rights prohibiting racial discrimination, addressed poverty and rural development, and promoted conservation and environmental protection. The grove of pine and dogwood trees surrounded by flowers sits on an island in the Potomac with trails, meadows, and a commemorative granite monolith.[31]
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial		District of Columbia 38.886°N 77.044°W / 38.886; -77.044 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial)	August 28, 2011	2.74 acres (0.0111 km2)	Martin Luther King Jr. was the most significant leader of the Civil rights movement, organizing boycotts against segregated buses, solidarity marches for civil rights, and the March on Washington against inequality. He won the Nobel Peace Prize for nonviolent resistance but was assassinated in 1968. Notable quotations, including from his "I Have a Dream" speech and sermons, are etched on granite walls and a 30 ft (9.1 m) sculpture of King.[32]
Mount Rushmore		South Dakota 43.879°N 103.459°W / 43.879; -103.459 (Mount Rushmore)	July 1, 1939	1,278.45 acres (5.1737 km2)	Gutzon Borglum led the sculpting of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln into a mountain in the Black Hills. Limited funding resulted in carving only 60 ft (18 m) heads without their torsos. Mountain goats, mule deer, and yellow-bellied marmots are among the wildlife living in the hills near the visitor center and walking path.[33]
Pearl Harbor		Hawaii 21.36°N 157.95°W / 21.36; -157.95 (Pearl Harbor)	March 12, 2019	21.30 acres (0.0862 km2)	The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, led to the entry of the United States into World War II. Japanese bombers in a surprise attack damaged 21 ships, killing 2,403 Americans. Only the USS Arizona, Oklahoma, and Utah were total losses, and their memorials are the centerpieces of this site that also includes Battleship Row and a visitor center with boat rides to the USS Arizona Memorial at the site of the wreck.[34][35]
Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial		Ohio 41.654°N 82.811°W / 41.654; -82.811 (Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial)	October 26, 1972	25.38 acres (0.1027 km2)	Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's naval fleet defeated the British at the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812, securing control of the lake and later peace with Britain and Canada. The world's largest Doric column, with an observation deck on top, stands 352 ft (107 m) tall on South Bass Island to commemorate the battle and international cooperation.[36]
Port Chicago Naval Magazine		California 38.056°N 122.030°W / 38.056; -122.030 (Port Chicago Naval Magazine)	October 28, 1992	5.00 acres (0.0202 km2)	In 1944, 430 tons of munition exploded while being loaded onto ships at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine, creating a three-mile-wide fireball that killed 320 people and seriously injured 390 more in the Port Chicago disaster. The majority of victims were Black, and a subsequent mutiny protesting unsafe conditions and segregation led to a court-martial of the mutineers and eventually integration of the armed forces.[37]
Roger Williams		Rhode Island 41.831°N 71.411°W / 41.831; -71.411 (Roger Williams)	October 22, 1965	4.56 acres (0.0185 km2)	Roger Williams founded the colony of Rhode Island on the basis of religious freedom, having been exiled from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for separating from the Church of England. The memorial is a landscaped park in downtown Providence, with a visitor center in a historic home.[38]
Thaddeus Kosciuszko		Pennsylvania 39.943°N 75.147°W / 39.943; -75.147 (Thaddeus Kosciuszko)	October 21, 1972	0.02 acres (0.0081 hectares)	Polish engineer Tadeusz Kościuszko joined the Continental Army when the American Revolution broke out, overseeing various fort construction projects and later leading troops on the battlefield. After returning to Poland and leading a failed uprising against Russian occupation, he briefly lived at this house in Philadelphia before returning to Europe again. This is the smallest unit of the National Park System.[39]
Theodore Roosevelt Island		District of Columbia 38.897°N 77.064°W / 38.897; -77.064 (Theodore Roosevelt Island)	October 27, 1967	88.50 acres (0.3581 km2)	Theodore Roosevelt led the Rough Riders during the Spanish–American War and served as governor of New York before becoming vice president and then president when William McKinley was assassinated. His Square Deal promoted trustbusting, labor rights, and consumer protection, and he was a noted conservationist, establishing the Forest Service, the first national monuments, and wildlife refuges. This forested island in the Potomac features hiking trails and a memorial plaza with fountains, notable quotations, and a 17 ft (5.2 m) statue of Roosevelt.[40]
Thomas Jefferson Memorial		District of Columbia 38.881°N 77.037°W / 38.881; -77.037 (Thomas Jefferson Memorial)	April 13, 1943	18.36 acres (0.0743 km2)	Thomas Jefferson was a Founding Father who wrote the Declaration of Independence, was the first secretary of state, and served as president from 1801 to 1809. He promoted democratic ideals, individual freedoms, and states' rights in his nationally formative writings, and as president he expanded the country's territory with the Louisiana Purchase. The memorial, based on the Pantheon and the Rotunda at the University of Virginia that Jefferson designed himself, sits on the Tidal Basin with a bronze statue facing toward the White House surrounded by notable quotations.[41]
Vietnam Veterans Memorial		District of Columbia 38.891°N 77.048°W / 38.891; -77.048 (Vietnam Veterans Memorial)	November 13, 1982	2.18 acres (0.0088 km2)	Almost three million Americans were deployed to Vietnam during the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975 as part of a campaign to stop communism in the region. Reflective black granite walls, sunken below ground level, bear the names of 58,320 servicemembers who died during the conflict. There are also statues representing women who served and the diversity of soldiers.[42]
Washington Monument		District of Columbia 38.889°N 77.035°W / 38.889; -77.035 (Washington Monument)	February 21, 1885	106.01 acres (0.4290 km2)	As commanding general of the Continental Army, George Washington was instrumental in securing victory in the Revolutionary War, leading him to serve as the first president of the United States. His presidency laid the foundations for the politics of the republic with policies on banking, taxes, the judiciary, and foreign affairs. The Monument, the centerpiece of the National Mall, is a 555 ft (169 m) tall obelisk of marble, granite, and gneiss topped with a small aluminum pyramid. A variety of interior memorial stones are visible from the elevator to the observation deck.[43]
World War I Memorial		District of Columbia 38.896°N 77.033°W / 38.896; -77.033 (World War I Memorial)	December 19, 2014	1.76 acres (0.0071 km2)	The US entered World War I in 1917 and the American Expeditionary Forces saw about 2.8 million servicemembers fight in Europe through the end of the following year, with 53,000 deaths. Originally called Pershing Park in honor of General John J. Pershing, as of 2019[update] the memorial is undergoing a conversion from a fountain and pond to a lawn and plaza with a wall of remembrance.[44][45]
World War II Memorial		District of Columbia 38.889°N 77.040°W / 38.889; -77.040 (World War II Memorial)	May 29, 2004	8.25 acres (0.0334 km2)	Over 16 million veterans served during World War II from 1941 to 1945 alongside the other Allies against the Axis powers. The memorial recognizes their service with two triumphal arches representing the Atlantic and Pacific theaters, surrounded by 56 pillars for the states and territories. At the center is a pool with an oval of fountains, on the east are walls engraved with scenes of war, and on the west is a wall with 4,048 gold stars representing the approximately 404,800 killed in action.[46]
Wright Brothers		North Carolina 36.014°N 75.668°W / 36.014; -75.668 (Wright Brothers)	December 4, 1953	428.44 acres (1.7338 km2)	Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first powered flight with the Wright Flyer at Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk in 1903, developing it into the first fixed-wing aircraft, the Wright Flyer III. A monument tower representing a wing commemorates their achievement and earlier aviation experimenters. Paths outline the routes of the first flights near a reproduction hangar.[47]

Close

The National Park Service provides technical or financial assistance to affiliated areas but does not own or administer them.^[12]

Congress has designated a number of sites as national memorials but not as units or affiliated areas of the National Park Service. While some are maintained by other federal agencies, most of these were created by local governments or private organizations which sought federal designation for wider and official recognition; the naming typically does not come with federal funding, but Congress has provided funds or allowed private fundraising for certain memorial sites.^[5] The Department of the Interior has noted that Congressional designation of private or local government sites as "National" may mislead the public into believing they are affiliated with the federal government.^[56] Congress has also authorized the construction of many memorials or commemorative works on federal land under the Commemorative Works Act, usually in Washington, D.C., or nearby;^[57] these are not listed unless specifically called a national memorial.

These memorials have been authorized by Congress but have not yet been constructed and established. Three would become NPS units if completed.^[92]

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for National historic areas in the United States.

• List of areas in the United States National Park System
• List of national monuments of the United States
• Presidential memorials in the United States
• National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission