List of memorials to Bataan Death March victims
Across the United States, and in the Philippines there exist dozens of memorials, such as monuments, plaques and schools, dedicated to the U.S. and Filipino prisoners who suffered or died during the Bataan Death March. There is also a wide variety of commemorative events held to honor the victims, include holidays, athletic events such as marathons, and memorial ceremonies held at military cemeteries.
Memorials
Philippines
- In Capas, Tarlac, there is the Capas National Shrine built in the grounds surrounding Camp O'Donnell.
- There is also a shrine in Bataan on Mount Samat named Dambana ng Kagitingan commemorating the battle and the march. The shrine has a colonnade that houses an altar, esplanade, and a museum. There is also a Memorial Cross built towering in height
- The commemorating all the Americans who died on the death march and at Camp O'Donnell during the war. Located at Camp O'Donnell, Capas, Tarlac, Philippines.
- Alongside modern roads that follow the march route up the Bataan peninsula, there are memorial markers labeled with "Death March" and a depiction of three soldiers with the km number for that location along the route.
United States
- Bataan Memorial Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico memorializes the veterans of the 200th Coast Artillery (United States) and 515th CA regiments. The park was dedicated in 1943, a monument was added in 1960, and major additions were completed in 2002. Rows of granite slabs are etched with the history of the units and the names of those who served. Each year fewer survivors meet to remember their ordeal.
- Plaque erected by the American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, Inc. in Piedmont Park, in Atlanta, Georgia.
- The Bataan Bridge in Carlsbad, New Mexico commemorates the victims of the march.
- Highway-70, through Southern New Mexico was renamed the Bataan Memorial Highway.
- Statue of American and Filipino Bataan survivors resides at Veterans Memorial Park, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Bataan Memorial Building—Santa Fe, New Mexico. The building is named in memoriam for the many New Mexico veterans serving in the 200th Coast Artillery during World War II. The building served as the State Capitol Building from 1900 to 1966.
- Bataan Memorial Trainway in El Paso, Texas honors the prisoners-of-war who died in the enemy camp
- The in Chicago, Illinois, where State Street crosses the Chicago River, commemorates the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor as well as those on the march.
- The Bataan Memorial Highway in Indiana, SR 38 from Richmond, Indiana to Lafayette, Indiana.
- A statue, at the corner of Milwaukee St. and Franklin St. in Janesville, Wisconsin, commemorates Company A of the 192nd Tank Battalion
- The "A Tribute To Courage" Memorial in Kissimmee, Florida, at the corner of Lakeshore Boulevard and Monument Avenue. It depicts a scene from the Bataan Death March: two soldiers, one American and the other Filipino, are propping each other up while a Filipino woman is offering water to them. It symbolizes the unique friendship between the U.S. and the Philippines—the two countries fought together during World War II, and the heroism and comradeship between the Americans and Filipinos. It was sculpted by Sandra Storm and is made of bronze. A brick walkway encircles the monument and there are commemorative plaques depicting the history of the Bataan Death March and the Memorial. American and Filipino flags fly side by side. It is the only statue in the U.S. dedicated to the heroes and survivors of the fall of Bataan and Corregidor and the Bataan Death March .
- Bataan Elementary School in Port Clinton, Ohio commemorates the 32 men from the Port Clinton area who were victims of the march.
- Bataan Death March Memorial Park in Spokane, Washington
- Bataan and Corregidor Streets next to Scott Circle in Washington, D.C., adjacent to the Embassy of the Philippines
- in San Luis Obispo, California.
Commemorative Events
The Philippines
Every year on April 9, the captured soldiers are honored on Araw ng Kagitingan, also known as the "Bataan Day", which is a national holiday in the Philippines. Beginning in 1962, the Boy Scouts of America Far East Council troops from Clark Air Base, Subic Bay and Sangley Naval Stations would join with Boy Scouts of the Philippines troops to reenact this march along the initial route in Bataan taken by the Prisoners of War, who were American and Filipino soldiers, sailors, airmen, and civilians. The original Death March was approximately in length, depending upon where in Bataan the POWs started.Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
The Sacrifices of the Fall of Bataan and Corregidor are commemorated at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl, Honolulu, Hawaii every year. On April 9, 2009, Philippines Secretary of National Defense, Hon. Gilberto C. Teodoro gave the "Araw ng Kagitingan Address" and led in a wreath laying ceremony, attended by US Senators Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka, Filipino World War II veterans, Hawaii government officials, members of the Consular Corps, the U.S. Pacific Command and the Filipino-American community in Honolulu. The Philippine Consul General in Honolulu, Hon. Ariel Y. Abadilla, organized the ceremony.White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, USA
The Bataan Death March is commemorated every year in March since 1993 at the White Sands Missile Range, northeast of Las Cruces, New Mexico, with a trail marathon known as the Bataan Memorial Death March. The full marathon and run covers paved road and sandy trails, and is regarded by Marathon Guide as one of the top 30 marathons in the U.S.Over 6,300 marchers participate in both the marathon and the run, with members of military units of the U.S. and foreign armed forces participating. Many civilians also participate, usually running in the full marathon, which is timed with awards. Several of the few surviving Bataan prisoners usually await the competitors to congratulate them on completing the grueling march.