Korean War Veterans Memorial

The Korean War Veterans Memorial is located near the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, DC. It was dedicated on July 27, 1995. The memorial commemorates the sacrifices of the 5.8 million Americans who served in the U.S. armed services during the three-year period of the Korean War. The war was one of the most hard fought in our history. During its relatively short duration from June 25, 1950 to July 27, 1953, 54,246 Americans died in support of their country. Of these, 8,200 are listed as missing in action or lost or buried at sea. In addition 103,284 were wounded during the conflict.

The 19 stainless steel statues were sculpted by Frank Gaylord of Barre, VT and cast by Tallix Foundries of Beacon, NY. They are pproximately seven feet tall and represent an ethnic cross section of America. The advance party has 14 Army, 3 Marine, 1 Navy and 1 Air Force members. The statues stand in patches of Juniper bushes and are separated by polished granite strips, which give a semblance of order and symbolize the rice paddies of Korea. The troops wear ponchos covering their weapons and equipment. The ponchos seem to blow in the cold winds of Korea. The statues are identified below:

Pos	Service	Duty	Race	Weapon	Pos	Service	Duty	Race	Weapon
1.	Army	Lead Scout	Caucasian	M-1	11.	USAF	Air-Ground Controller	Caucasian	Carbine
2.	Army	Scout	Caucasian	M-1	12.	USMC	Asst Gunner	Caucasian	Tripod
3.	Army	Squad Leader	Caucasian	M-1	13.	USMC	Gunner	Caucasian	Mach Gun
4.	Army	BAR Man	Afro-American	BAR	14.	Navy	Corpsman	Afro-American	None
5.	Army	BAR Asst	Caucasian	Carbine	15.	USMC	Rifleman	Asian-American	M-1
6.	Army	Rifleman	Afro-American	M-1	16.	Army	Rifleman	Caucasian	M-1
7.	Army	Group Leader	Caucasian	Carbine	17.	Army	Rifleman	Hispanic	M-1
8.	Army	Radio Operator	Caucasian	Carbine	18.	Army	Asst Group Leader	Caucasian	M-1
9.	Army	Army Medic	Hispanic	None	19.	Army	Rifleman	Native American	M-1
10.	Army	Forward Observer	Caucasian	Carbine

The Mural Wall was designed by Louis Nelson of New York, NY and fabricated by Cold Spring Granite Company, Cold Spring, MN. The muralist, sculptor and architect worked closely to create a two-dimensional work of art adjacent to the three-dimensional statues. The wall consists of 41 panels extending 164 feet. Over 2,400 photographs of the Korean War were obtained from the National Archives. They were enhanced by computer to give a uniform lighting effect and the desired size. The mural, representing those forces supporting the foot soldier, depicts Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard personnel and their equipment. The etchings are arranged to give a wavy appearance in harmony with the layout of the statues. The reflective quality of the Academy Black Granite creates the image of a total of 38 statues, symbolic of the 38th Parallel and the 38 months of the war. When viewed from afar, it also creates the appearance of the mountain ranges of Korea. It is organized by service as shown below: