Rangers - WW II Manila American Cemetery and Memorial
Rangers who rest in the soils they liberated
headstone photos courtesy Hubert O. Caloud our friend at the Manila American Cemetery Sherry Klein
The World War II Manila American Cemetery and
Memorial is located about six miles southeast of Manila, Republic of the
Philippines. The cemetery,152 in extent, is on a prominent plateau, visible at a
distance from the east, south and west. It contains the largest number of
graves of our military dead of World War II, a total of 17,202, most of whom
gave their lives in the operations in New Guinea and the Philippines. The
headstones are aligned in 11 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 American Armed Forces in the Pacific,
China, India and Burma. On rectangular Trani limestone piers within the
hemicycles are inscribed the names of 36,285 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.
From the memorial and other points within the cemetery there are impressive
views over the lowlands to Laguna de Bay and towards the distant mountains.
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Manila American Cemetery and Monument