80: Memorial

The National D-Day Memorial

The National D-Day Memorial is a War Memorial located in Bedford, Virginia.

The Memorial, bordering the Blue Ridge Mountains in southwestern Virginia, is an area of over 50 acres that overlooks the Town of Bedford.

It officially opened on June 6, 2001, with 15,000 People present, including then-President George W. Bush.

About 60,000 people have visited the memorial each year. Of those, more than half are from outside of Virginia.

Bedford, Virginia was selected for the site of the Memorial because of the “Bedford Boys.”

Bedford lost more Residents per capita in the Normandy Landings than any other American Community.

19 of the 34 Virginia National Guard Soldiers from Bedford who were in Company A, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division were killed on D-Day, and 4 more died during the rest of the Normandy Campaign, 2 of them from other 116th Companies.

With a 1944 Population of 3,200, proportionally this Community suffered the Nation's most severe D-Day losses.