Wonder why WWI is ‘The Great War’? This Missouri museum has answers

The National WWI Museum and Memorial in Missouri aims to help today’s citizens remember and understand the Great War and how it impacted the global community, according to its mission statement.

The Liberty Memorial Tower at the National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri, rises 268 feet above the North Lawn. Visitors can take an elevator and stairs to the open-air observation deck at the top of the tower. (Springfield News Leader)

The memorial predates the museum and was dedicated in 1926 by President Calvin Coolidge. It was closed in 1994 due to the physical structure deteriorating, and Kansas City residents passed a limited-run sales tax to support the building’s restoration in 1998. The museum was designated as the nation’s official World War I museum by Congress in 2004 and opened in 2006. The museum and memorial, located at 2 Memorial Drive in Kansas City, Missouri, host more than 1 million visitors annually, according to the website.

Why it matters

At the end of World War I — what was then thought to be the war to end all wars — leaders in Kansas City decided to create a lasting monument to those who had served. With the assistance of the public, more than $2.5 million was raised in 10 days, which is the equivalent of more than $49 million today. The memorial and museum are a testament to the public’s passion for remembering the war that changed their lives and the world.

What to see today

After walking over a field of 9,000 red silk poppies — each representing a thousand combatant fatalities — museum guests can step inside recreations of trenches, peek into a church repurposed as a field hospital and watch an immersive film depicting the realities of the war in the recreation of a battle crater. At the Liberty Memorial Tower, guests take an elevator and stairs up to an open-air observation deck to look out over the Kansas City skyline. At night, the tower is lit up by a flame created by steam and lighting effects.

Read the entire article on the Springfield News leader website.
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