Across the nation, national park sites help tell the story of our nation during World War II. Visiting these sites helps us ensure President Truman's promise that "America will never forget their sacrifices" will always hold true.
Our debt to the heroic men and valiant women in service of our country can never be repaid. They have earned our undying gratitude. America will never forget their sacrifices. -Harry S. Truman
List of Parks
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Eye on the Atlantic
Acadia National Park
The Navy operated a radio station on Big Moose Island during World War II and into the Cold War.
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Battle for the Aleutians
Aleutian WWII National Historic Site
Honoring the occupation of two islands; a mass relocation of civilians; a 15 month air war; and one of the Pacific's deadliest battles.
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5,204 names of honor
American Memorial Park
This 133-acre park honors the American and Marianas people who gave their lives during the Marianas Campaign of WWII.
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Basic Training School for WWII Spies
Catoctin Mountain Park
Once a summer camp, Catoctin Mountain Park became the Basic Special Operations Training School for a new civilian intelligence agency.
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U-boats Attack!
Cape Hatteras National Seashore
By June 1942, German U-Boats had sunk 397 merchant vessels off the coast, earning Cape Hatteras the name "Torpedo Junction."
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Recreation Camp for Soldiers
Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Hobbs Air Field, located 100 miles from Carlsbad Caverns National Park sent 1,000 soldiers each month to the caverns to rest.
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WWII Training and Recreation Camp
Denali National Park
Denali's mountainous terrain provided the ideal place to test soldiers and equipment, and to escape war's own hardships through recreation.
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The Homefront's Crusading Spirit
Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site
After FDR's death in 1945, Val-Kill became Mrs. Roosevelt's permanent home. Learn about Eleanor in her tranquil home.
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A refuge during War
Home of FDR National Historic Site
FDRs 'Home on the Hudson' offers insights in the President's thoughts and experiences during World War II.
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A Date That Will Live In Infamy
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
This memorial, tucked along the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC, honors FDR and his legacy, including his leadership during WWII.
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Supreme Allied Commander
Eisenhower National Historic Site
Visit the post-war home of Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower.
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High Flying History
Gateway National Recreation Area
Gateway's Fort Hancock, Floyd Bennett Air Field, and other sites were bustling centers of action during World War II.
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A Secret in Plain Sight
George Washington Memorial Parkway
During World War II, Fort Hunt was the location of a top-secret military intelligence and POW interrogation installation (P.O. Box 1142).
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Defending the Harbor
Golden Gate National Recreation Area
The defense of San Francisco Bay was of paramount importance during World War II.
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Radar Station in the Pacific
Haleakala National Park
The many antennas and lights atop Haleakala's 'Red Hill' led the locals to call this WWII radar station 'Haleakala National Forest.'
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Training Camps and bombing ranges
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
After Pearl Harbor this federal land, strategically located in the vast Pacific Ocean, became the home of many military installations.
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ALIVE…NEED SMALL BOAT…KENNEDY
John Fitzgerald Kennedy NHS
Explore the birthplace of JFK to learn about his harrowing experiences as a PT boat captain during World War II.
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Creating the Atomic Bomb
Manhattan Project NHP
The Manhattan Project thrust humanity into the nuclear age and forever changed the world.
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One camp - ten thousand lives
Manzanar National Historic Site
In 1942, the US army leased the land to confine thousands of Japanese Americans.
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Lessons in History
Minidoka National Historic Site
Minidoka was one of ten War Relocation Authority (WRA) camps used to carry out the government's system of exclusion and detention of persons
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Cold Weather Training
Mount Rainier National Park
The 10th Mountain Division tested the mettle of men and equipment and learned mountaineering skills at Mt. Rainier National Park.
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A VITAL LINK
National Park of American Samoa
The Samoa islands hosted US Navy and Marines during the war and were an essential link in the chain of communications and sea lanes.
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From Engagement to Peace
Pearl Harbor National Memorial
A monument to the Pacific War, from Pearl Harbor to the internment of Japanese Americans to the battles in the Aleutians.
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A Training Camp for Spies
Prince William Forest Park
A new spy agency converted this park's summer camp cabins into the Communications and Advanced Special Operations Training School.
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A Tragic Wartime Accident
Port Chicago Naval Magazine NM
In 1944, 320, mostly African American, men were instantly killed when two ships being loaded with ammunition exploded.
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Defending the Olympic Peninsula
Olympic National Park
Only two of Olympic National Park's multiple coast guard and aircraft warning stations still exist, but their history still speaks volumes.
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A Pacific Lookout!
Redwood National Park
The Klamath River Radar Station B-71 in Redwood National Park, California, is a rare, surviving World War II early-warning radar station.
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United We Can Win!
Rosie the Riveter WWII Homefront NHP
A shortage of white male workers led to active recruitment of (initially) women, and then minority men & minority women to war jobs.
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Breaking Barriers with Valor
Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
Learn about the courageous and heroic actions that earned these pioneers increased respect in and out of the skies.
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THE PACIFIC THEATER
War in the Pacific NHP
Remnants on the battlefields of Guam are a reminder of the world war that consumed every nation and culture throughout the Pacific region.
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Sands, in the Danger Zone
White Sands National Park
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, the U.S. military established a permanent presence in the Tularosa Basin.
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Here We Mark the price of freedom
World War II Memorial
The World War II Memorial recognizes the ways Americans served, honors those who fell, and recognizes the victory they achieved.
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A WWII Naval Hospital
Yosemite National Park
In 1943, the “U.S. Naval Convalescent Hospital Yosemite National Park, California” began welcoming veterans for medical care and recreation.
Last updated: June 26, 2020