PRESENT DAY
Today, the USS Arizona Memorial on the island of Oahu, Hawaii honors the lives lost on the day of the attack. Visitors to the memorial reach it by boats from the naval base at Pearl Harbor. It commemorates "initial defeat and ultimate victory" of all lives lost on December 7, 1941. The USS Arizona Memorial marks the resting place of 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors and marines killed. The attack on Pearl Harbor and the island of Oahu was the action that led to the United States' direct involvement in World War II.
In 1999, the battleship USS Missouri was moved to Pearl Harbor from the United States west coast and docked near, and perpendicular to, the USS Arizona Memorial. Upon the deck of the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, the Japanese surrendered to United States, ending World War II. The pairing of the two ships became an evocative symbol of the beginning and end of the United States' participation in the war.
Memorial staff initially criticized the placement of the Missouri, saying the large battleship would "overshadow" the Arizona Memorial. To help guard against this perception Missouri was placed well back of the Arizona Memorial, and positioned in Pearl Harbor in such a way as to prevent those participating in military ceremonies on Missouri's aft decks from seeing the Arizona Memorial. The decision to have Missouri's bow face the Memorial was intended to convey that the Missouri now watches over the remains of the Arizona so that those interred within the Arizona's hull may rest in peace. These measures have helped preserve the individual identities of the Arizona Memorial and the Missouri Memorial, which has improved the public's perception of having both Arizona and Missouri in the same harbor.
In 1999, the battleship USS Missouri was moved to Pearl Harbor from the United States west coast and docked near, and perpendicular to, the USS Arizona Memorial. Upon the deck of the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, the Japanese surrendered to United States, ending World War II. The pairing of the two ships became an evocative symbol of the beginning and end of the United States' participation in the war.
Memorial staff initially criticized the placement of the Missouri, saying the large battleship would "overshadow" the Arizona Memorial. To help guard against this perception Missouri was placed well back of the Arizona Memorial, and positioned in Pearl Harbor in such a way as to prevent those participating in military ceremonies on Missouri's aft decks from seeing the Arizona Memorial. The decision to have Missouri's bow face the Memorial was intended to convey that the Missouri now watches over the remains of the Arizona so that those interred within the Arizona's hull may rest in peace. These measures have helped preserve the individual identities of the Arizona Memorial and the Missouri Memorial, which has improved the public's perception of having both Arizona and Missouri in the same harbor.
Citations:
"Missouri Memorial." Pearl Harbor Tours, Oahu, Hawaii. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2014.
"Pacific Historic Parks." Pacific Historic Parks. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2014.
United States. National Park Service. "World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument (U.S. National Park Service)." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, 29 Sept. 2014. Web. 14 Oct. 2014.
"Missouri Memorial." Pearl Harbor Tours, Oahu, Hawaii. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2014.
"Pacific Historic Parks." Pacific Historic Parks. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2014.
United States. National Park Service. "World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument (U.S. National Park Service)." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, 29 Sept. 2014. Web. 14 Oct. 2014.