Armistice Day Weekend
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Admission to the Museum and Memorial is free for veterans and active duty military personnel, while general admission for the public is half-price all weekend (Friday-Sunday, Nov. 9-11). These discounted rates are only available on-site at the Museum's ticketing counter.
ARMISTICE DAY WEEKEND ACTIVITIES
REFLECTIONS OF HOPE: ARMISTICE 1918
When: All Day through Sunday, Nov. 11
Where: Reflection Pool outside the National WWI Museum and Memorial
What: Artist Ada Koch’s moving installation features 117 intricate metal poppy sculptures in a symbolic arrangement. Each poppy represents 1,000 American soldiers killed during the Great War.
WORLD WAR I RESEARCH STATIONS
When: All Day, Friday-Sunday, Nov. 9-11
Where: Outside J.C. Nichols Auditorium Lobby inside the National WWI Museum and Memorial
What: Find your connection to World War I during Memorial Day weekend through research stations. With access to multiple databases including, Fold3.com, Ancestry.com, the Museum and Memorial’s online collections database, the American Battlefield Monuments Commission and the National Archives, discover how the Great War affected your family through records, photographs and much more. FREE to the public.
HANDS-ON HISTORY
When: 11 a.m., Saturday, Nov. 10
Where: Near Paul Sunderland Glass Bridge inside the National WWI Museum and Memorial
What: History is brought to life during this family-friendly program, where kids of all ages are invited to handle Great War artifacts. FREE to the public.
ARMISTICE CEREMONY
When: 9:30 a.m., Sunday, Nov. 11
Where: Memorial Courtyard outside the National WWI Museum and Memorial
What: Join us for a multi-national commemoration of the Armistice of 1918 featuring moving readings of poems and letters from soldiers, musical performances and more. FREE to the public.
BELLS OF PEACE
When: 10:55 a.m., Sunday, Nov. 11
Where: Memorial Courtyard outside the National WWI Museum and Memorial
What: This special wreath-laying ceremony culminates in tolling of bells to honor those who served in the Great War. FREE to the public.
WALK OF HONOR DEDICATION CEREMONY
When: 2 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 11
Where: J.C. Nichols Auditorium inside the National WWI Museum and Memorial
What: More than 100 new Walk of Honor granite bricks will be dedicated during a special ceremony. The Walk of Honor, now more than 11,000 bricks strong, is divided into three sections: bricks dedicated solely to those who served in World War I; bricks dedicated to veterans of any military service; and bricks that honor civilian friends, family or organizations. Walk of Honor bricks are dedicated twice each year during Memorial Day and Veterans Day ceremonies. FREE to the public.
SPECIAL EXHIBITIONSFOR LIBERTY: AMERICAN JEWISH EXPERIENCE IN WWI
Where: Wylie Gallery
What: Hailed as “remarkably prescient” by the New York Times, this special exhibition examines the American Jewish battlefield and homefront participation through a series of remarkable stories and objects. Featured items including Irving Berlin’s draft registration card and the handwritten draft of the Balfour Declaration, which eventually paved the way for the establishment of the Jewish state. Closes Sunday, Nov. 11.
DIGGERS AND DOUGHBOYS: THE ART OF ALLIES 100 YEARS ON
Where: Memory Hall
What: Australian and American troops fought side-by-side for the first time in July 1918 during World War I. Since then, the Diggers (Australians) and Doughboys (Americans) supported each other in every major military conflict, including Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. This exhibition features incredible artwork from the Australian War Memorial Collection illustrating the unique comradeship between the two countries. Closes Sunday, Nov. 11.
THE WORLD REMEMBERS
Where: Main Gallery
What: The World Remembers is an international education project whose purpose is to remember and honor these combatants who perished during each year of the war by displaying their names in more than 75 locations throughout Europe and North America for a period of eight weeks ending with the Western Front Armistice Day of Nov. 11. Closes Sunday, Nov. 11.
WAR AROUND US: SOLDIER ARTIST IMPRESSIONS
Where: Ellis Gallery
What: Creating art when surrounded by war seems contradictory. Artists Jean Lefort, Curtiney George Foote, Charles Thatcher Shellabarger, Myron Chapin and Jean Berne-Bellecour demonstrate several ways one can capture wartime experiences using the fields, villages, and people who witnessed the devastation of WWI. Closes Jan. 13, 2019.
CRUCIBLE: LIFE & DEATH IN 2018
Where: Exhibit Hall
What: For the Doughboys on the Western Front, 1918 was their year. It was the crucible where the American land forces forged their fighting force. They fought alongside their main allies from Cantigny to Belleau Wood to the Champagne Region, the Piave River to the Marne to St. Mihiel to the Meuse Argonne to Vladivostok. This exhibition is not an illustration or timeline of how the 1918 battles were fought, rather it focuses on individuals and their lives and deaths in the crucible of 1918. Closes March 10, 2019.
ARMISTICE DAY WEEKEND HOURS AND PARKING
The National WWI Museum and Memorial will be open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Friday-Saturday and from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Sunday. To accommodate expected high Armistice Day Weekend attendance, additional parking will be available on the Southeast lawn of the complex (weather permitting).