Which historic military sites have been the most memorable for you?

Yorktown VA, there is something awe-inspiring about the spot where we won our freedom.

Although not a battlefield.....Arlington National Cemetery is the most somber place I ever visited.

Gettysburg...The death and destruction of those 3 days is heart wrenching to a student of history like myself. Pickett's charge in particular showed the bravery of the Confederate soldiers. It is also a testament to the futility of war .

The beaches of Normandy and the American cemetery over looking the beaches. Not a blade of grass out of place, sparkling from start to finish. I stood on the cliffs over looking the beach and just wondered how they did it. The greatest generation for sure!

Gettysburg

Luxembourg American Cemetery. When I was stationed in Germany, my Dad sent me the serial number and unit of my Uncle Jimmy. He was killed during the Battle of the Bulge on January 7th, 1945. Dad and Jimmy were very close. He never really talks about him much, you can still see the hurt in his eyes. When I got the information of where he was, I went to see him. I was really touched because I was the first Johnson to see him since he left for war. I got it all on VHS tape, and when I got back to the states, ran copies off for the next family reunion. I was a hero in the eyes of all my relatives, and I just felt thankful that I was able to go see James E. Johnson, 193rd Giider Infantry, 17th Airborne Division.

The wall, several brother's names there.

Gettysburg. It's not even close. Spend a day, spend the night. Spend even a few hours and the place sucks you in. The spirits and ghosts of soldiers past are said to haunt the place. So many men, congregated on so few acres, for such violent reasons, set out to kill/defeat each other in mortal combat. Many, too many, lost their lives in more than brutal ways. The turning tide of our country's adolescents. Growing pains of maturation. Some say both sides lost, as indeed they did, in human cost. The dawn of the next few months and then years brought hope and contrition. The following decades and century brought "progress." At least we're not openly at each other's throats again. Or maybe that's what's needed, like a forest fire breeds new dwarf pines, perhaps Thomas Jefferson was right that "From time-to-time the tree of Liberty needs to be watered with the blood of patriots." Gettysburg.

The only military site I've ever been to was Auschwitz, the Nazi extermination camp in Poland. If I will ever visit any other military site, it will still not compare to the memories at Auschwitz. There will always be bullies and the weak. As long as there is breath in my lungs and blood coursing through my muscles, I will stand and fight for the helpless.

The site that I remember most, and researched extensively after my two visits were the "Arizona Memorial!" I was impressed with the ship itself, of course, however, the feeling I got while on the memorial was one of a real comradery even though I knew none of those who were on her as crew. Words cannot totally explain my feelings about these two adventures, and if I ever have the opportunity to visit the Islands again, I will make it a definite point to visit the old girl once again!