III.

History

Representative Marcy Kaptur of Ohio first proposed a bill to Congress to create a World War II memorial in 1987. Congress finally passed a bill in 1993 and President Bill Clinton signed the law, authorizing the memorial the same year. After a nationwide competition, architect Friedrich St. Florian was chosen to design the memorial. Construction on the memorial began in 2001. The memorial cost $175 million and was built with both public and private contributions. It was completed in 2004 and dedicated in a public ceremony on May 29, 2004. It is administered by the National Park Service.