Memorial Park is a 65-acre park located at 6005 Underwood Avenue near the

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

neighborhood of

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

, United States. Its south perimeter runs adjacent to the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, also known as U.S. Route 6. The park was dedicated as a memorial to the

armed services A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

men and women from Douglas County who perished during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Today it serves as Omaha’s setting to commemorate and honor those who served and died in conflicts, providing a place for remembrance and reflection on the sacrifices made.

History

On March 3, 1943, before the idea of a war memorial had been proposed, the defunct Dundee Golf Course property wasn't being used. A local

Kiwanis Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...

Club suggested (and property owner Dundee Realty Company agreed) that two hundred apportioned Victory Gardens be sponsored and planted there. In a January 1944 letter to Henry Doorly, publisher of the

Omaha World-Herald The ''Omaha World-Herald'' is a daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, the primary newspaper of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. It was locally owned from its founding in 1885 until 2020, when it was sold to the newspaper ...

, Mrs. J W Broad, owner of the Gypsy Tea Shop noted that mothers and wives of those killed during World War II would come into her shop "looking so sorrowful" She suggested that a monument be erected to honor the fallen. As a result, the World War II Memorial Association of Omaha was formed under the leadership of

Storz Brewery The Storz Brewing Company was located at 1807 North 16th Street in North Omaha, Nebraska. Established from a company started in 1863, Storz Brewing began in 1876 by Gottlieb Storz and was owned by the Storz family until 1966; the brewery ceased o ...

owner Robert H. Storz and many other prominent citizens of Omaha. He lamented a twelve-year struggle the

American War Mothers The American War Mothers was founded in 1917 and given a Congressional charter A congressional charter is a law passed by the United States Congress that states the mission, authority, and activities of a group. Congress has issued corporate ...

experienced trying to raise money for a

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

monument in Omaha. In 1925 a $250,000 structure of Bedford limestone designed by famed war memorial sculptor

Lorado Taft Lorado Zadok Taft (April 29, 1860 – October 30, 1936) was an American sculptor, writer and educator. Part of the American Renaissance movement, his monumental pieces include, ''Fountain of Time'', ''Spirit of the Great Lakes'', and ''The ...

, was proposed for a prominent point in Elmwood Park. A scaled-back monument was eventually dedicated on November 1, 1937 at Turner Park. Robert Storz was intent that a permanent and suitable World War II monument should be achieved. After years of zoning and legal disputes related to redevelopment plans, in August 1944, the World War II Memorial Association of Omaha executive committee and the Omaha City Council reached an agreement on the 22.91 acres of condemned Dundee Golf Course property (former Happy Hollow Country Club) near 60th Street and US Route 6 (Dodge Street). The remaining 42 acres of property were purchased from the Dundee Realty Company and the City of Omaha agreed to accept and maintain this ground for memorial park purposes. After owner Mary George King (daughter of Charles Carlton George) handed over the land, Dundee Realty Company folded. Shortly afterward, Mary George King and her husband H. Stephen King moved to La Jolla, California. More than 3,000 individuals, patriot organizations, and business organizations, voluntarily contributed $233,732.59 for the purchase of land, architectural services, construction, and landscaping.

Design

In 1945 the

Leo A Daly Leo A. Daly, LLC is an American architecture firm established in 1915 by Leo A. Daly, Sr. in Omaha, Nebraska. Aside from architectural design, the firm also works in planning, engineering, interior design and program management. History As of ...

Company of Omaha was chosen as the chief architect for the planned war memorial.

John Caspar Wister John Caspar Wister (March 19, 1887 – December 27, 1982) was an American horticulturalist known as the Dean of American Horticulture. He founded and served as the first director of the American Iris Society from 1920 to 1934, as director emerit ...

of Philadelphia was named landscaper and horticulturist. The shrine is a semi-circular colonnade of seven arches. Above each arch, a circular

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

sculpture portrays a branch of World War II’s seven military branches: the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

, US Army Airborne Corp, US Army Infantry,

US Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...

, US Army Medical Corps, US Army Field Artillery, and US Navy Aviators. Bronze plaques on the columns list the names of over 900 Douglas County men and women who died in combat and non-combat roles during World War II.

Dedication

On Friday, June 4, 1948, President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

arrived in Omaha for the annual reunion of the 35th Infantry Division for which he served as officer Captain Harry Truman, commander of Battery D of the

129th Field Artillery Regiment The 129th Field Artillery Regiment is a regiment of the Field Artillery Branch of the United States Army, part of the Missouri Army National Guard. The 1st Battalion is the only active unit of the regiment, with the battalion Headquarters and H ...

. The following day at 2:30pm the president placed a wreath dedicating the new World War II Memorial Park. Truman then visited Boys Town and placed a wreath at the sarcophagus of Fr. Edward J Flanagan in the Dowd Memorial Chapel.

Improvements

In 1959 the Omaha Rose Society added a rose garden, and in 1990

Woodmen of the World WoodmenLife (officially Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society) is a not-for-profit fraternal benefit society founded in 1890, based in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, that operates a large privately held insurance company for its members. ...

added flagpoles and flags along the driveway entering the park. A

pedestrian bridge A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...

over

Dodge Street Dodge Street is the main east–west street in Omaha, Nebraska. Numbered as U.S. Route 6 (US 6) for most of its length, the street starts in Downtown Omaha and connects to West Dodge Road just west of 78th Street. From there, it conti ...

called the Memorial Park Pedestrian Bridge was completed in 1968. The park was the site of several curfew and anti-

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration, or remonstrance) is a public act of objection, disapproval or dissent against political advantage. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooperation in which numerous people cooperate ...

s by

youth activists Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. Youth ...

in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Volunteers continue to tend to over 1,000 rose bushes during the growing season. Eagle Plaza was dedicated as part of the 75th anniversary celebration activities on Sunday, June 4th, 2023. Situated on the south ridge of Robert H Storz Drive, this 4,000 square foot public enclosure creates flexible and fully accessible space for activities, public art displays, military-associated groups, student leadership education, and other community-based activities. It was named in honor of

Omaha Central High School Omaha Central High School, originally known as Omaha High School, is a fully accredited public high school located in downtown Omaha, Nebraska, United States. It is one of many public high schools located in Omaha. As of the 2023–2024 academi ...

’s Eagle Battalion

JROTC The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) is a Federal government of the United States, federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools and also in some middle schools across the United States and at US mil ...

program, the second oldest JROTC program in the country.

Events

On the last Friday in June, there is a concert in the park along with a fireworks show in commemoration of the

Independence Day (United States) Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing ...

holiday. Originally, the show was sponsored by Commercial Federal Bank. Later, the event was sponsored by Bank of the West. Currently, the event is called "The City of Omaha Celebrates America." The event attracts over 50,000 people each year to picnic, listen to music and watch an amazing fireworks presentation with friends and family. Many stake out large spots every year, like this patriotic display affectionately referred to as "The World's Largest American Flag Blanket!" Some claim it can be seen from space. Memorial Park Blanket.jpg, Is this the World's Largest American Flag Blanket? Here are the musical acts who have performed there: 1987 - The Lettermen 1988 - Bobby Vinton 1993 - Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons, The Drifters 1994 - Martha Reeves and the Vandellas,

Bobby Vee Robert Thomas Velline (April 30, 1943 – October 24, 2016), known professionally as Bobby Vee, was an American singer who was a teen idol in the early 1960s and also appeared in films. According to '' Billboard'' magazine, he had thirty- ...

1995 - Frankie Avalon, Sha Na Na 1996 - The Temptations 1997 - The Four Tops, America 1998 - Neil Sedaka,

The Shirelles The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic, New Jersey, in 1957. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens (later Shirley Alston Reeves), Doris Coley (later Doris Kenner-Jackson), Addie "Micki" Harris (later Addie Harris McF ...

1999 - Blood, Sweat & Tears, The Drifters 2000 - The Righteous Brothers, The Supremes 2001 - The Beach Boys, Gary Puckett 2002 - Creedence Clearwater Revisited, The Spinners 2003 - The Village People, The Pointers 2004 - (rained out) The

Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock music, rock band formed in San Jose, California in 1970. Known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their Vocal harmony, vocal harmonies, the band has been active for over five d ...

Three Dog Night Three Dog Night is an American rock band formed in 1967, founded by vocalists Chuck Negron, Cory Wells, and Danny Hutton. This lineup was soon augmented by Jimmy Greenspoon (keyboards), Joe Schermie (bass), Michael Allsup (guitar), and Floyd Sn ...

Also in 2004, 311 played at Memorial Park for free in celebration of Omaha's 150th Anniversary. There were over 40,000 people there to celebrate. 2005 - The

, Mulberry Lane 2006 -

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon), or simply REO, was an American Rock music, rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial suc ...

, The Fifth Dimension 2007 - KC & the Sunshine Band, Little River Band 2008 - (rained out) Kool & The Gang, .38 Special 2009 -

The Guess Who The Guess Who was a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1965. The band found their greatest success in the late 1960s and early 1970s, under the leadership of singer/keyboardist Burton Cummings and guitarist Randy Bachman, wit ...

Grand Funk Railroad Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in Flint, Michigan, in 1969 by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar, keyboards, harmonica), Don Brewer (drums, vocals) and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved pea ...

2010 - The Bank of the West Celebrates America concert marked its 20th year in Omaha in 2010 by bringing the national "United In Rock" tour of Foreigner,

Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; ; lit. "Shuddering"), also called the River Styx, is a goddess and one of the rivers of the Greek Underworld. Her parents were the Titans Oceanus and Tethys, and she was the wife of the Titan Pallas and the moth ...

, and

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

to the annual free live concert and fireworks show in Memorial Park on Friday, July 2, 2010. Officials estimated attendance reached a record 80,000 attendees.
Bank of the west. Retrieved 6/07/10. 2011 -

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band formed in Rockford, Illinois in 1970 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. Their work bridged elements of '60s pop rock, guitar pop, '70s har ...

, .38 Special, Take Me to Vegas. The stage moved (permanently) to the

side of the Park for the 2011 concert. 2012 -

Huey Lewis and the News Huey Lewis and the News (formerly known as Huey Lewis & The American Express) are an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually achieving 19 top ten singl ...

, Mockingbird Sun, Scarlett Drive. 2013 - Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo, Loverboy 2014 - Smash Mouth, Blues Traveler, Sugar Ray, Uncle Kracker 2015 - Joan Jett,

Eddie Money Edward Joseph Money ( Mahoney; March 21, 1949September 13, 2019) was an American singer and songwriter who, in the 1970s and 1980s, had eleven Top 40 songs, including " Baby Hold On", " Two Tickets to Paradise", " Think I'm in Love", " Shakin' ...

2016 - Kenny Loggins 2017 - Kool & the Gang 2018 – Starship featuring Marty Balin, Bostyx, Survivor 2019 – Chris Isaak, Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul 2020 – (event cancelled due to Covid Pandemic concerns) 2021 – Elvis Costello, Wyclef Jean 2022 - Sheryl Crow, Dave Mason 2023 - Melissa Etheridge, Herman's Hermits 2024 - Roger Daltrey, Inhaler 2025 - Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band, Mike Campbell and The Dirty Knobs

References