IIB 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1849 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
NOVEMBER 6, 2009 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources 
AN ACT 
To designate the Liberty Memorial at the National World 
War I Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, as the National 
World War I Memorial, to establish the World War I 
centennial commission to ensure a suitable observance 
of the centennial of World War I, and for other purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘World War I Memorial 
and Centennial Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) More than 4,000,000 men and women from 
the United States served in uniform in the defense 
of liberty during World War I, among them two fu-
ture presidents, Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. 
Eisenhower. 
(2) 2,000,000 individuals from the United 
States served overseas during World War I, includ-
ing 200,000 naval personnel who served on the seas. 
(3) The United States suffered 375,000 casual-
ties during World War I. 
(4) The events of 1914 through 1918 shaped 
the world, our country, and the lives of millions of 
people in countless ways. 
(5) The centennial of World War I offers an op-
portunity for people in the United States to learn 
about the sacrifices of their predecessors. 
(6) Commemorative efforts allow people in the 
United States to gain a historical understanding of 
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the type of conflicts that cause countries to go to 
war and how those conflicts are resolved. 
(7) Kansas City is home to the Liberty Memo-
rial and America’s National World War I Museum 
(as so recognized in the Ronald W. Reagan National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 
(Public Law 108–375)). 
(8) America’s National World War I Museum 
seeks— 
(A) to preserve the history of World War 
I; and 
(B) to educate and enlighten people about 
this significant event, the consequences of which 
are still with us. 
(9) Kansas City is home to the national head-
quarters for the Veterans of Foreign Wars. 
(10) Missouri is the home State of General 
John Joseph Pershing, who commanded the Amer-
ican Expeditionary Forces in Europe during World 
War I. 
(11) The Kansas City area is the home of the 
Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum. 
(12) The Dwight David Eisenhower Presi-
dential Library and Museum is located close to Kan-
sas City in the neighboring State of Kansas. 
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(13) There is no nationally recognized memorial 
honoring the service of Americans who served in 
World War I. 
(14) In 1919, the people of Kansas City, Mis-
souri, expressed an outpouring of support and raised 
more than $2,000,000 in two weeks for a memorial 
to the service of Americans in World War I. That 
fundraising was an accomplishment unparalleled by 
any other city in the United States irrespective of 
population and reflected the passion of public opin-
ion about World War I, which had so recently ended. 
(15) Following the drive, a national architec-
tural competition was held by the American Institute 
of Architects for designs for a memorial to the serv-
ice of Americans in World War I, and the competi-
tion yielded a design by architect H. Van Buren 
Magonigle. 
(16) On November 1, 1921, more than 100,000 
people witnessed the dedication of the site for the 
Liberty Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri. That 
dedication marked the only time in history that the 
five allied military leaders; Lieutenant General 
Baron Jacques of Belgium, General Armando Diaz 
of Italy, Marshal Ferdinand Foch of France, Gen-
eral John J. Pershing of the United States, and Ad-
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miral Lord Earl Beatty of Great Britain, were to-
gether at one place. 
(17) General Pershing noted at the November 
1, 1921, dedication that ‘‘[t]he people of Kansas 
City, Missouri, are deeply proud of the beautiful me-
morial, erected in tribute to the patriotism, the gal-
lant achievements, and the heroic sacrifices of their 
sons and daughters who served in our country’s 
armed forces during the World War. It symbolized 
their grateful appreciation of duty well done, an ap-
preciation which I share, because I know so well how 
richly it is merited’’. 
(18) During an Armistice Day ceremony in 
1924, President Calvin Coolidge marked the begin-
ning of a three-year construction project for the Lib-
erty Memorial by the laying of the cornerstone of the 
memorial. 
(19) The 217-foot Liberty Memorial Tower has 
an inscription that reads ‘‘In Honor of Those Who 
Served in the World War in Defense of Liberty and 
Our Country’’ as well as four stone ‘‘Guardian Spir-
its’’ representing courage, honor, patriotism, and 
sacrifice, which rise above the observation deck, 
making the Liberty Memorial a noble tribute to all 
who served in World War I. 
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(20) During a rededication for the Liberty Me-
morial in 1961, World War I veterans and former 
Presidents Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisen-
hower recognized the memorial as a constant re-
minder of the sacrifices during World War I and the 
progress that followed. 
(21) The 106th Congress recognized the Lib-
erty Memorial as a national symbol of World War I. 
(22) The National World War I Museum is the 
only public museum in the United States specifically 
dedicated to the history of World War I. 
(23) The National World War I Museum is 
known throughout the world as a major center of 
World War I remembrance. 
SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF THE LIBERTY MEMORIAL AT THE 
NATIONAL WORLD WAR I MUSEUM IN KANSAS 
CITY, MISSOURI, AS THE NATIONAL WORLD 
WAR I MEMORIAL. 
The Liberty Memorial at the National World War I 
Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, is hereby designated 
as the ‘‘National World War I Memorial’’. No Federal 
funds may be used for the annual operation or mainte-
nance of such Memorial. 
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