WASHINGTON -- Nearly 59 years after the end of World War II, the National World War II Memorial will be dedicated in Washington, D.C., on Saturday.
The Memorial Day weekend celebration on the National Mall will culminate an 11-year effort to honor America's World War II generation, often called the "greatest generation."
The memorial was authorized by Congress in 1993.
Construction began in September 2001 after several years of fund raising and public hearings.
The memorial received more than $195 million in cash and pledges from private contributors.
The official dedication celebration will span four days and will include a WWII-themed reunion exhibition on the National Mall.
The memorial stands at the east end of the reflecting pool on the National Mall, between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial.
The bronze-and-granite memorial is nearly a football field in length, it features two massive arches, 43 feet above grade and 23 feet square.
One arch marks the Atlantic theater of the war, the other the Pacific
In between are waterfalls, fountains, 56 smaller granite pillars (one for the District of Columbia and each state and territory at the time), a sunken plaza and a pool.
On the freedom wall hang 4,000 gold stars, to symbolize the 400,000 Americans killed in the war.
Sculptural elements include four bronze columns, four bronze eagles, 24 sculptures at the ceremonial entrance, 112 bronze wreathes and 56 bronze ropes between the pillars.
The veterans in whose honor the memorial was raised are aging.
The survivors, thought to be 4 million of the 16 million men and women who served during World War II, are in their 80s today.
The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates they are dying at the rate of nearly 1,100 a day.
This weekend's dedication of the memorial is one of a number of high-profile targets in the
United States that could be tempting to terrorists this summer.
And as expected, security will be formidable.
Authorities say crowd control and security for Saturday's event
will be handled by U.S. Park Police.
They will be assisted by 34
other local and federal law enforcement agencies.
In addition, surveillance cameras used during major downtown
events will be monitored from D.C. Metropolitan Police Department
headquarters throughout the weekend.
Officials also say several streets near the war memorial will be
closed to unauthorized traffic from Friday evening through early
Monday.
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