The Liberty Memorial Museum
The Liberty Memorial Museum in Kansas City, MO, is the only facility in the United States totally dedicated to preserving the memory and the history of World War One.
The celebrations at the ending of the War had hardly quieted down when a group of people in Kansas City met to decide what steps could be taken to help that present generation and generations to come not to forget the sacrifices that were made.
The outcome of that meeting was the plan for the Liberty Memorial, an edifice that would be, in the words of one founder, "a living expression for all time of the gratitude of a grateful people to those who offered and who gave their lives in defense of liberty and our country." In less than two weeks, more than $2,500,000 was raised for the effort.
The memorial was opened on November 11, 1926. In the 1930's, the memorial association entered into an agreement with the City of Kansas City for the maintenance and daily operations of the memorial. However, because construction technologies of the time did not allow effective weatherproofing, incursion of water into the superstructure over the years began to take its toll on the building and the city's ability to keep up with it until, for safety reasons, it had to be closed in 1994.
In 1998, the city voted an 18-month, half-cent sales tax to be earmarked for the restoration of the memorial. It is estimated $45 million will be raised. Plans are to use $30 million for the restoration and put $15 million into an endowment for continued maintenance and future repairs. However, this is only a portion of the total cost of renovation, and fundraising is ongoing. The Liberty Memorial is a 501C3 tax-exempt organization and those interested in donating can get more information at http://www.libertymemorialmuseum.org/.
In addition to the general fundraising efforts, memorial granite bricks are being sold to allow anyone with a relative in World War One to memorialize that person on a "Walk of Honor" which will be constructed to the south of the memorial following restoration. The reconstruction was finished in November 2001. |