Manila American Cemetery and Memorial
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Manila American Cemetery and Memorial | |
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American Battle Monuments Commission | |
Manila American Cemetery headstones with memorial building behind. |
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Used for those deceased 1941 - 1945 | |
Established | 1948 |
Location | Taguig City, Philippines |
Designed by | Gardener A. Dailey |
Total burials | 17,206 |
Unknown burials |
3,744 |
Burials by nation | |
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Burials by war | |
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Statistics source: American Battle Monuments Commission |
The Manila American Cemetery and Memorial is located in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City in Metro Manila, Philippines.
The cemetery, 152 acres or 615,000 square metres in extent, is on a prominent plateau, visible at a distance from the east, south and west. The largest cemetery in the Pacific of Americans killed during World War II, a total of 17,206 graves, most of whom gave their lives in the operations in New Guinea and the Philippines. The headstones are made of marble which are aligned in eleven plots forming a generally circular pattern, set among masses of a wide variety of tropical trees and shrubbery.
The chapel, a tall stone structure enriched with sculpture and mosaic, stands near the center of the cemetery. In front of it on a wide terrace are two large hemicycles with rooms at each end. Twenty-five large mosaic maps in these four rooms recall the achievements of the United States Armed Forces in the Pacific, China, India and Burma. On rectangular Trani limestone piers within the hemicycles are inscribed the names of 36,282 of the Missing who gave their lives in the service of America and who rest in unknown graves. Carved in the floors are the seals of the American states and its territories.
The Memorial is maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission. The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except December 25 and January 1.