Online Registry Honors World War II Generation

    WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- During the four years
 following the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, which thrust the
 United States into the Second World War, more than 16 million Americans
 served in uniform, more than 400,000 lost their lives, and millions more
 supported the war effort on the home front.
 
 
 
     The World War II Memorial that honors their service and sacrifice was
 dedicated in Washington, D.C. in May 2004. While building the memorial, the
 American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) introduced an online World War
 II Registry to document the names of those who participated in history's
 largest and most devastating war.
 
 
 
     The Registry is accessible through ABMC's World War II Memorial Web
 site at www.wwiimemorial.com. Any American that served in the armed forces
 or contributed to the war effort on the home front, whether in factories
 and shipyards or farms and neighborhoods, is eligible.
 
 
 
     "We've been compiling names for several years," ABMC spokesman Mike
 Conley said, "and we continue to receive more than 6,000 new enrollments a
 month. We're pleased with the results so far, but we've only scratched the
 surface of the database potential."
 
 
 
     The Registry contains more than two million records. More than 1.5
 million of the entries were submitted by the public. The database also
 includes National Archives and Records Administration lists of those killed
 in service during the war, and the names of those buried in ABMC overseas
 commemorative cemeteries or listed on its Tablets of the Missing.
 
 
 
     There is no charge to place a name in the Registry. Registry entries
 include such information as name, branch of service, hometown, and a brief
 narrative of the individual's wartime service. A photo can be submitted to
 personalize the record.
 
 
 
     Individuals can be enrolled through the memorial Web site or by calling
 toll free to 1-800-639-4992.
 
 
 
     The Registry database is also accessible for search only at the World
 War II Memorial site on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
 
 
 
     Information about the American Battle Monuments Commission's worldwide
 commemorative sites and programs is available at www.abmc.gov.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

SOURCE American Battle Monuments Commission