Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Centennial Commemoration Lecture Series

 

Tributes to a Lost Soldier: Artifacts Related to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Written and presented by Roderick Gainer, Curator, Arlington National Cemetery, and Kevin Hymel, Contract Historian, Arlington National Cemetery


In this episode, Arlington National Cemetery Curator Rod Gainer and Contract Historian Kevin Hymel provide a behind-the-scenes discussion about artifacts related to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier that reside in the cemetery’s collection. They explore the Memorial Amphitheater Display Room exhibit and bring it to life for listeners.

Listen Here:  Artifacts Related to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Rod Gainer is the curator at Arlington National Cemetery, a role he has held for the past nine years. He has worked in military history collections for more than 20 years. Throughout his career, he has published extensively on 19th-century military history and material culture.

Kevin Hymel is a contract historian at Arlington National Cemetery and has worked as a historian for the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force for more than 15 years. He is the author of numerous articles and four books on military history.


 

 

 

 

 

The French Croix de chevalier de la Légion d’honneur, presented to the World War I Unknown Soldier by French politician and World War I veteran André Maginot on October 25, 1921, in Le Havre, France. Today, it is on display in Memorial Amphitheater. (U.S. Army photo)



 

 

 

 

 

During the funeral of the World War I Unknown Soldier, he received the nation’s highest military award: the Medal of Honor. (U.S. Army photo)


 

 

 

 

 

 

Great Britain awarded the Victoria Cross—their highest military honor—to the Unknown American Soldier from World War I. (U.S. Army photo)


Chief Plenty Coups of the Crow Nation (Apsáalooke) represented American Indians at the funeral of the World War I Unknown Soldier. During the burial service, he removed his coup stick (shown here) and war bonnet. He placed them on the crypt in tribute to the Unknown Soldier and the many American Indians who served and died during the war. (U.S. Army photo)


 

 

 

 

 

Chief Plenty Coups’ war bonnet. (U.S. Army photo)


 

 

 

 

 

Following the precedent set during the funeral for the World War I Unknown Soldier, the Unknown Soldiers from World War II and the Korean War also received the Medal of Honor. Shown here: the Medal of Honor presented to the World War II Unknown Soldier. (U.S. Army photo)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

The Medal of Honor awarded to the Korean War Unknown Soldier. (U.S. Army photo)


 

 

 

 

On November 11, 1978, President Jimmy Carter dedicated this plaque at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to honor veterans of the Vietnam War. The plaque currently hangs in the Memorial Amphitheater Display Room. (U.S. Army photo)