Eisenhower National Historic Site Commemorates 75th Anniversary of D-Day

Living historians at Eisenhower National Historic Site.

NPS Photo

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania - Eisenhower NHS commemorated the 75th anniversary of the 1944 “D-Day” Normandy landings commanded by General Dwight D. Eisenhower with a week-long series of special events held throughout Gettysburg. To begin the commemoration, on June 1, 2019, the park invited living historians on site to portray the soldiers, sailors, and airmen who participated in what Eisenhower termed, the “Great Crusade.” That evening, the park was fortunate to host historian Jared Frederick, who presented on his new book, Dispatches of D-Day: A People’s History of the Normandy Invasion.

Daily throughout the week, rangers presented interpretive programs on site at the Eisenhower farm focusing on General Eisenhower and other aspects of the D-Day invasion. On the park’s Facebook page, posts debuted in real-time, marking the decisions and events of three quarters of a century ago. On Wednesday, June 5, in conjunction with Gettysburg National Military Park, Eisenhower staff “invaded” Gettysburg NMP’s park amphitheater and held a special evening campfire program recalling the eve-of-battle and the moments leading up to the invasion of Europe.

On the actual anniversary, Thursday, June 6, both the American Battlefield Trust and WITF Smart Talk Radio broadcasted live from the Eisenhower farm, commemorating the invasion of Europe 75 years ago. The site’s week long commemoration ended with another special program on the evening of Saturday, June 8, in the Gettysburg National Cemetery. Military veterans joined park rangers as they remembered and honored the soldiers, sailors, and airmen buried in the cemetery who gave the last full measure of devotion to their country during World War II.

Attendance at all events exceeded expectations, as relatives of ancestors who fought in the invasion looked for some place stateside to commemorate the battle to liberate Europe. The park’s Facebook page saw interactions over 500% of its normal activity and visitors traveled from all over the country to remember the success of the invasion and General Eisenhower’s starring role. Special thanks to the staff of Gettysburg National Military Park in supporting its adjoining National Park Service site as they worked together to commemorate this special anniversary with an ambitious slate of interpretive programming!