Women and Memorial Day

The memorial was dedicated in 1993 and includes a sculpture by Texas artist Glenna Goodacre depicting three women caring for a fallen soldier.

Remembering the Women Who Served and Died

Memorial Day is a time to honor those who have died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Join us as we honor the women who served and who paid the ultimate price, and whose stories have far too often disappeared from history.

Women who volunteered as a nurse during the Spanish-American War, and who contracted typhoid fever while treating wounded and sick soldiers in Puerto Rico and died.

We pause to honor the nearly 400 women serving as military nurses during World War I who died on US soil during the Spanish Flu epidemic in 1918 when it swept through crowded military camps, hospitals, and ports of embarkation, many of whom contracted the illness while treating sick soldiers. A tragedy made all the more poignant since the epidemics of 2020-2021. .

As women’s involvement in the military expanded, even more women have put themselves in the path of danger in their service to country. Of the approximately 400,000 U.S. women who served with the armed forces during World War II, as many as 543 died in war-related incidents, including 16 from enemy fire and 38 brave Women’s Airforce Service Pilots who perished during the war.

But this weekend, while we honor these women whose service was recorded, we will also remember the countless women who were unable to serve in any official capacity, but who still volunteered for civilian service and put themselves at risk. Women who served as spies or cared for soldiers or served in any way they could, including disguising themselves as men to fight, and die, for their country.

During the Vietnam War, women served in many different roles. Many women served as nurses and physicians while others acted as air traffic controllers, communication specialists, and  intelligence officers. The Vietnam Women’s Memorial was established to honor the women who risked their lives to serve their country.

Eight yellowwood trees surround the sculpture in honor of the eight servicewomen who gave their lives in Vietnam. The women’s names are also among the over 58,000 names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Ask a ranger to find a name on the wall and learn more about the people who served our country.