Washington State World War II Memorial

Olympia, Washington, United States

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Listed, not yet checked · Oct 2026

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Five 14-foot bronze blades etched with the names of nearly 6,000 Washington residents killed in the Second World War, designed by Olympia artist Simon Kogan and dedicated in 1999 on the Washington State Capitol Campus in Olympia.

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Washington State World War II Memorial

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Site-level location · 47.0378° N, 122.9019° W

FIELD GUIDE

The story

The names of nearly 6,000 Washington residents killed in the Second World War are etched into five bronze blades so closely that, from a distance, they form ghostly figures of soldiers and officers. The Washington State World War II Memorial stands on the Capitol Campus in Olympia, and the Capitol Campus describes it as among the first in the country to honour those who served in the war.

The project began in 1995, when the State Legislature put $50,000 towards it. Olympia resident Simon Kogan was chosen from 42 entrants, and his design was inspired by the first stanza of "America the Beautiful". The five blades are 14 feet tall and bend into a shape that mirrors the Capitol dome. Experience Olympia says the memorial was dedicated on 28 May 1999 before a crowd of 5,000, and that more than $800,000 was raised, with $200,000 from the Legislature.

Around the blades, Experience Olympia describes a granite world map, a cast-bronze field of 4,000 wheat stalks said to symbolise the service members who died, and large rocks engraved with the names of battles. The conservators EverGreene say four blades carry the figures and the fifth shows a mother holding an infant, without names, and that the wheat stalks are made from melted torpedo railings from old warships. Sources differ on what the blades represent: the Capitol Campus says each symbolises a military unit, and a 2024 JOLT News report says a military branch.

Granite tiles along the walkways carry personal messages from donors: the Capitol Campus counts over 3,000, Experience Olympia nearly 3,000, and an online tile search helps locate inscriptions. According to EverGreene, the tiles were removed and refabricated in 2010 because of deterioration, and Kogan restored the memorial and recreated the figures on the blades.

A bronze plaque carries the words of a Second World War veteran: "Remember me." The grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk.

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PRACTICAL

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WHAT TO EXPECT

An open-air memorial of bronze blades, granite boulders and a bronze wheat field, with walkways of inscribed granite tiles and a bronze plaque summarising the war. The Capitol Campus provides an online tile search for the inscriptions.

ACCESS

On the Washington State Capitol Campus in Olympia, near the corner of Capitol Way and 11th Avenue, according to Experience Olympia. The Capitol Campus says its grounds are open to the public every day from dawn to dusk.

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