Interesting War Museums or Memorials?
February 7, 2011 5:55 PM Subscribe
A friend's 16 year old son has picked up an interest in history, particularly war memorials. She'd like to take him on a trip over spring break to encourage him but is lacking choices other than Civil War sites in VA/MD and the Pearl Harbor Memorial, both of which they've visited before. Places in the United States are preferable but she'd consider other English-speaking countries (she doesn't want to hire a tour guide). Where can they go to get a real sense of history and blow this teenager's mind?
Cantigny Park in Wheaton, IL used to be Robert McCormick's estate. When he died, it became a park. There's a museum dedicated to the US Army 1st Division there, focusing on WWII; the coolest thing, though, is that there are a ton of tanks scattered through the park that you're allowed to climb on. I'm not sure if I would make it a destination, but, if they're ever in the area, it's a really neat place.
posted by wayland at 6:01 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by wayland at 6:01 PM on February 7, 2011
WWI in France. You don't need a guide. They're amazing. The Somme looks very much the same today. And have him read Aftermath first.
posted by Ideefixe at 6:03 PM on February 7, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by Ideefixe at 6:03 PM on February 7, 2011 [3 favorites]
If you really want to blow his mind, take him to London:
From the Tower of London to the Imperial War Museum or the Cabinet War Rooms, Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's, it is one thousand years of history jam packed in one city.
London Walks is a great way to see all of it. But it might be slow for a teenager.
posted by cjets at 6:08 PM on February 7, 2011 [5 favorites]
From the Tower of London to the Imperial War Museum or the Cabinet War Rooms, Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's, it is one thousand years of history jam packed in one city.
London Walks is a great way to see all of it. But it might be slow for a teenager.
posted by cjets at 6:08 PM on February 7, 2011 [5 favorites]
Little Round Top would be pretty mindblowing, especially if you can get him to read (or listen to) The Killer Angels before the visit.
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 6:08 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 6:08 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
Oops, I see you're familiar with the Civil War sites. Still, go twice, and would you scream 'FIX BAYONETS!!!!' a few times for me?
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 6:10 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 6:10 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
How about the Vietnam Veterans Memorial? The size of the wall and length of names should impress on him how many were killed and allow him to make a connection with them. It's also in D.C. with plenty of other memorials and historical artifacts to see.
Some friends of mine took their kids to Washington's and Jefferson's homes. While not war memorials, they really gave a sense of who the men who shaped the United States were as people, not giants.
Although I've lived in Texas for over a decade, I've sadly never been to the Alamo. My friends tell me it's really small. Unless you find other things to do in central Texas, it may not be economical just for the Alamo.
posted by vilandra at 6:12 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Some friends of mine took their kids to Washington's and Jefferson's homes. While not war memorials, they really gave a sense of who the men who shaped the United States were as people, not giants.
Although I've lived in Texas for over a decade, I've sadly never been to the Alamo. My friends tell me it's really small. Unless you find other things to do in central Texas, it may not be economical just for the Alamo.
posted by vilandra at 6:12 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Tour the USS Ling! He can walk around a real WWII sub and see where the sailors actually lived!
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 6:21 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 6:21 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
There is the WW-I Memorial in Kansas City. Very interesting.
posted by tamitang at 6:27 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by tamitang at 6:27 PM on February 7, 2011
There's also the Confederate Air Force Museum in Midland, Texas.
posted by tamitang at 6:29 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by tamitang at 6:29 PM on February 7, 2011
There are lots of War of 1812 historic sites in southern Ontario: Fort Erie, Fort George, Fort York...
posted by torisaur at 6:35 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by torisaur at 6:35 PM on February 7, 2011
The Vicksburg National Military Park, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, blew my mind. I'm not really even into war history, and I was only in Vicksburg because it was where I stopped the night before when I realized I couldn't drive any further.
"The park commemorates the campaign, siege, and defense of Vicksburg. The city's surrender on July 4, 1863, along with the capture of Port Hudson, LA, on July 8, split the South, giving control of the Mississippi River to the Union. Over 1,340 monuments, a restored Union gunboat, and National Cemetery mark the 16-mile tour road."
You walk around and stand next to cannons that are pretty much in the same place they were during the battle, and the sign next to it essentially says "This cannon was fired at soldiers that were hiding right over there behind that big rock." I had a real feeling of "Wow, I'm walking over ground where soldiers actually fought and died." It brought history to life for me in a way that I don't think anything else ever has.
posted by MexicanYenta at 6:41 PM on February 7, 2011
"The park commemorates the campaign, siege, and defense of Vicksburg. The city's surrender on July 4, 1863, along with the capture of Port Hudson, LA, on July 8, split the South, giving control of the Mississippi River to the Union. Over 1,340 monuments, a restored Union gunboat, and National Cemetery mark the 16-mile tour road."
You walk around and stand next to cannons that are pretty much in the same place they were during the battle, and the sign next to it essentially says "This cannon was fired at soldiers that were hiding right over there behind that big rock." I had a real feeling of "Wow, I'm walking over ground where soldiers actually fought and died." It brought history to life for me in a way that I don't think anything else ever has.
posted by MexicanYenta at 6:41 PM on February 7, 2011
The Vicksburg web site doesn't have much in the way of photos, but Google has a good selection.
posted by MexicanYenta at 6:46 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by MexicanYenta at 6:46 PM on February 7, 2011
I know you local Civil War sites are not what you are looking for, but I can't recommend Gettysburg enough. Absolutely blew me away and my son (17 at the time) felt the same. Standing at the very spot where the Confederacy went into a permanent retreat is a powerful experience.
I'd also suggest a trip to New England. Lexington Green, Concord, all the sites in Boston. I grew up here and still haven't visited them all. I used to walk through a cemetery that had Revolutionary War Veteran graves that were still decorated each Memorial Day.
If your Spring Break is in April you can actually see a recreation of the Battle on the Green. Be forewarned that is also Boston Marathon weekend and hotel rooms might be scarce.
Finally if you want really early American history, there are sites and memorials all over New England related to the early Indian-Colonist battles. Look up the Pequot Wars or King Phillip's War on Google for details. Plymouth Rock is just lame though, and most likely isn't even a true story.
posted by JohntheContrarian at 6:48 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
I'd also suggest a trip to New England. Lexington Green, Concord, all the sites in Boston. I grew up here and still haven't visited them all. I used to walk through a cemetery that had Revolutionary War Veteran graves that were still decorated each Memorial Day.
If your Spring Break is in April you can actually see a recreation of the Battle on the Green. Be forewarned that is also Boston Marathon weekend and hotel rooms might be scarce.
Finally if you want really early American history, there are sites and memorials all over New England related to the early Indian-Colonist battles. Look up the Pequot Wars or King Phillip's War on Google for details. Plymouth Rock is just lame though, and most likely isn't even a true story.
posted by JohntheContrarian at 6:48 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
I kind of agree with Kandarp Von Bontee above, that Gettysburg, PA is the definitive Civil War battlefield, but I disagree that Little Roundtop is the proper focus for a young man on his first visit. Instead, let him walk in the footsteps of Pickett's men, across that damned field, if he can, imagining Union cannon in front of him, aimed at him, obscured only by smoke and the moans of his imaginary comrades all about him (arrayed in an imaginary line with him, more than a mile long, to his left and right), step by step, all the way, to the fishhooked Union lines of Cemetery Ridge, where the pride of the Confederacy was broken, and fell away, on that grim July day in 1863.
It may take him enough time to do that, to understand, forever, what words like "war" and "courage" and "futile" really mean.
posted by paulsc at 6:50 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
It may take him enough time to do that, to understand, forever, what words like "war" and "courage" and "futile" really mean.
posted by paulsc at 6:50 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
The Australian War Memorial in Canberra is more like a museum with a secondary memorial function. Even if he can't make it for a visit, the website looks like it has quite a bit of interesting info to explore.
posted by UbuRoivas at 6:52 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by UbuRoivas at 6:52 PM on February 7, 2011
If they do end up going to Europe, I've always wanted to go to Waterloo.
posted by wayland at 6:55 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by wayland at 6:55 PM on February 7, 2011
Bless him. I, too, collect war memorials.
If she's serious about going out of the country, I strongly recommend visiting the Western Front around the town of Ieper (Ypres) in Flanders--there is the Menin Gate, where the Last Post ceremony takes place nightly, the In Flanders Fields museum, and all the memorials to British and Commonwealth troops surrounding it--Sanctuary and Polygon Woods, Hill 60, Railway Dugouts Cemetery, and so forth. You can rent a car or, as we did, tour by rented bicycle, depending on the weather. The British experience of this war was much like the American experience of Vietnam, only even more devastating, if that can be imagined, and the whole area is a shrine to the dead, so English-only speakers have no trouble getting around. They're likely to be the only Americans there, though. (I consider that a plus!)
He should also, if given the opportunity, visit the American cemetery at Colleville/St. Laurent-sur-Mer on the coast of Normandy, not far from Omaha and Utah Beaches and Pointe du Hoc. All the locals we met there are lovely people with a very long memory, very welcoming to Americans. There are some good private museums around the area, and the Peace Museum at Caen, which explores all the European conflicts of the 20th century. And you can also go to Bayeux and see the Bayeux Tapestry, which commemorates the "reverse" invasion (William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings, 1066).
If they do decide to tour the battlefields of France and/or Belgium, I recommend taking Major and Mrs. Holt's Battlefield Guides, which provides good itinerary suggestions and lots of useful details.
In the United States: other than the Civil War battlefields, there's Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument (just inside Montana on the border with Wyoming), where the Lakota and Arapaho, led by Crazy Horse, defeated Custer. Memorials to both sides are there, as well as a really nice museum. Though maybe not this time of year...
And don't forget the Revolutionary War sites, too. I grew up in the Philadelphia area, not far from Washington Crossing State Park to the north and Valley Forge to the south.
But you could easily spend a week in Washington D.C. and see all the memorials there, as well as the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. And this isn't a memorial, exactly, but the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, OH is huge and could take a few days to properly visit.
Finally, in Quebec: the Plains of Abraham (in Quebec City), now known as Battlefields Park, where the British defeated the French in 1759. I haven't been there, but I'm desperate to go.
posted by tully_monster at 7:01 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
If she's serious about going out of the country, I strongly recommend visiting the Western Front around the town of Ieper (Ypres) in Flanders--there is the Menin Gate, where the Last Post ceremony takes place nightly, the In Flanders Fields museum, and all the memorials to British and Commonwealth troops surrounding it--Sanctuary and Polygon Woods, Hill 60, Railway Dugouts Cemetery, and so forth. You can rent a car or, as we did, tour by rented bicycle, depending on the weather. The British experience of this war was much like the American experience of Vietnam, only even more devastating, if that can be imagined, and the whole area is a shrine to the dead, so English-only speakers have no trouble getting around. They're likely to be the only Americans there, though. (I consider that a plus!)
He should also, if given the opportunity, visit the American cemetery at Colleville/St. Laurent-sur-Mer on the coast of Normandy, not far from Omaha and Utah Beaches and Pointe du Hoc. All the locals we met there are lovely people with a very long memory, very welcoming to Americans. There are some good private museums around the area, and the Peace Museum at Caen, which explores all the European conflicts of the 20th century. And you can also go to Bayeux and see the Bayeux Tapestry, which commemorates the "reverse" invasion (William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings, 1066).
If they do decide to tour the battlefields of France and/or Belgium, I recommend taking Major and Mrs. Holt's Battlefield Guides, which provides good itinerary suggestions and lots of useful details.
In the United States: other than the Civil War battlefields, there's Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument (just inside Montana on the border with Wyoming), where the Lakota and Arapaho, led by Crazy Horse, defeated Custer. Memorials to both sides are there, as well as a really nice museum. Though maybe not this time of year...
And don't forget the Revolutionary War sites, too. I grew up in the Philadelphia area, not far from Washington Crossing State Park to the north and Valley Forge to the south.
But you could easily spend a week in Washington D.C. and see all the memorials there, as well as the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. And this isn't a memorial, exactly, but the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, OH is huge and could take a few days to properly visit.
Finally, in Quebec: the Plains of Abraham (in Quebec City), now known as Battlefields Park, where the British defeated the French in 1759. I haven't been there, but I'm desperate to go.
posted by tully_monster at 7:01 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Canyon de Chelly is a National Monument, an archaeological site, and is the place Kit Carson's troops rode in and rounded up the inhabitants to send them on The Long Walk. Spring Break might still be a bit cold for visiting the Navajo Nation but there is definitely United States military history involved there. In the near future, the World War II Navajo Code Talker Museum is to be built there.
posted by Anitanola at 7:04 PM on February 7, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by Anitanola at 7:04 PM on February 7, 2011 [3 favorites]
Not a war memorial, but I go to Historic Jamestowne National Park in Virginia any chance I get. If at all possible, you want to get your tour from Ranger Warder. It's worth calling ahead to see when he is scheduled. He has worked at the park since before the fort was discovered, and all in one tour he will spin the tale of the Jamestown settlers and the archaeologist who swore he would find the fort when everyone else though the site had eroded into the James River. You'll learn about the disparate pieces of information the archaeologist put together to find the fort, and you will stand in the very spot where Pocahontas did cartwheels.
And if you go on weekdays during the summer when the archaeologists are working, it will blow your mind. You can talk with them as they uncover things and they are happy to explain to you. Last summer I chatted with someone who was rinsing/sifting dirt from a bucket and he found a blue bead. He held it up and I realized that he and I were the first people to see that bead in almost 400 years, and I just about cried.
(Okay, so the getting teary-eyed thing may be a bit much even though it is true. I am a history nerd but this place is so powerful. When we learn about history the events seem almost inevitable to us-- of course they happened that way-- but there I am reminded of the total uncertainty these people faced.)
posted by scarnato at 7:20 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
And if you go on weekdays during the summer when the archaeologists are working, it will blow your mind. You can talk with them as they uncover things and they are happy to explain to you. Last summer I chatted with someone who was rinsing/sifting dirt from a bucket and he found a blue bead. He held it up and I realized that he and I were the first people to see that bead in almost 400 years, and I just about cried.
(Okay, so the getting teary-eyed thing may be a bit much even though it is true. I am a history nerd but this place is so powerful. When we learn about history the events seem almost inevitable to us-- of course they happened that way-- but there I am reminded of the total uncertainty these people faced.)
posted by scarnato at 7:20 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
Much more pleasant weatherwise for Spring Break is the National World War II Museum in New Orleans.
There is also the Chalmette Battleground and Jean Lafitte National Historic Park where the Battle of New Orleans was the concluding battle of the War of 1812.
Also being commemorated this year in New Orleans is the 200th anniversary of the largest slave revolt in United States history.
posted by Anitanola at 7:25 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
There is also the Chalmette Battleground and Jean Lafitte National Historic Park where the Battle of New Orleans was the concluding battle of the War of 1812.
Also being commemorated this year in New Orleans is the 200th anniversary of the largest slave revolt in United States history.
posted by Anitanola at 7:25 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
Vietnam Wall. And the other memorials in DC.
I can't tell from your question - is he more interested in memorials themselves, or interested in battle sites? You are getting lots of recommendations forthe latter, but they aren't always one and the same.
For a battle site, I'd add Little BigHorn.
But there are a lot of fascinating memorials that are physically separate from battle locations. Indianapolis has the incredibly striking War Memorial, with amazing scultpures of mythologized war, a museum in the lower levels, and a climbing tower. It also has a memorial to the crew of the USS Indianapolis.
posted by Miko at 7:35 PM on February 7, 2011
I can't tell from your question - is he more interested in memorials themselves, or interested in battle sites? You are getting lots of recommendations forthe latter, but they aren't always one and the same.
For a battle site, I'd add Little BigHorn.
But there are a lot of fascinating memorials that are physically separate from battle locations. Indianapolis has the incredibly striking War Memorial, with amazing scultpures of mythologized war, a museum in the lower levels, and a climbing tower. It also has a memorial to the crew of the USS Indianapolis.
posted by Miko at 7:35 PM on February 7, 2011
The Boston area. The city has overgrown the close-in sites (Bunker Hill...), but a half hour outside of town you can still visit the surprisingly old-looking Lexington Green and Concord Bridge. (If you're lucky "spring break" might correspond with the Patriots' Day re-enactments.)
The other mind-blowing military sites that come to mind are some of the warship memorials/museums. Battleship Cove in Fall River, Mass. has a WWII battleship; NYC has an aircraft carrier; across the river from Philadelphia (in Camden NJ) is the battleship New Jersey, etc.
posted by AsYouKnow Bob at 7:36 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
The other mind-blowing military sites that come to mind are some of the warship memorials/museums. Battleship Cove in Fall River, Mass. has a WWII battleship; NYC has an aircraft carrier; across the river from Philadelphia (in Camden NJ) is the battleship New Jersey, etc.
posted by AsYouKnow Bob at 7:36 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Seconding the Australian War Memorial. A few minutes in the Hall of Memory to reflect on the values portrayed therein is a surefire cure for any special snowflakery with which one might be afflicted. It's one of my favourite places in the entire world.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 7:41 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by obiwanwasabi at 7:41 PM on February 7, 2011
people don't think about it much, but new york city is PACKED with this kind of stuff (especially lower manhattan). so are philadelphia and boston and new orleans.
not many preserved battlefields, though--for that, you might look into the middle tennessee area (here's a good site to get you started). fly into nashville and rent a car. you can drive to stones' river, 30 miles away in mufreesboro, and shiloh, about an hour away in pittsburg landing. there are also some markers around nashville showing where the union lines were before they pushed into franklin. 2 hours south is chattanooga and the battle of chickamauga (and some lovely scenery).
from there you could hop over to vicksburg, which is well described in earlier posts, or get down to atlanta and multiple sitesin georgia. both are about half a day's drive. if you go the georgia route, i imagine a tour of andersonville prison will rip your heart out.
charleston and savannah (they're only a couple hours apart) are also nice towns with well-preserved history, and both are pleasant places to hang out otherwise.
i always thought it would be awesome to retrace lewis and clark's expedition from st. louis to the pacific. (by car or RV, unless you can get six months off to do it).
if you want to go abroad, normandy, yes, absolutely. i've never been but always wanted to go. if you want to have your mind blown, though, go to germany or poland and visit a concentration camp.
posted by thinkingwoman at 7:42 PM on February 7, 2011
not many preserved battlefields, though--for that, you might look into the middle tennessee area (here's a good site to get you started). fly into nashville and rent a car. you can drive to stones' river, 30 miles away in mufreesboro, and shiloh, about an hour away in pittsburg landing. there are also some markers around nashville showing where the union lines were before they pushed into franklin. 2 hours south is chattanooga and the battle of chickamauga (and some lovely scenery).
from there you could hop over to vicksburg, which is well described in earlier posts, or get down to atlanta and multiple sitesin georgia. both are about half a day's drive. if you go the georgia route, i imagine a tour of andersonville prison will rip your heart out.
charleston and savannah (they're only a couple hours apart) are also nice towns with well-preserved history, and both are pleasant places to hang out otherwise.
i always thought it would be awesome to retrace lewis and clark's expedition from st. louis to the pacific. (by car or RV, unless you can get six months off to do it).
if you want to go abroad, normandy, yes, absolutely. i've never been but always wanted to go. if you want to have your mind blown, though, go to germany or poland and visit a concentration camp.
posted by thinkingwoman at 7:42 PM on February 7, 2011
NYC has a large amount of war history packed into a very small area. In Brooklyn their is The Soldiers and Sailors Arch at Grand Army Plaza (there are some great hidden bits to search out here) and The Prison Ship Martyr's Monument in Ft. Greene Park. The Green-Wood Cemetery was where parts of the Battle of Brooklyn were fought, and has numerous connections to several wars.
Floyd Bennet Field, The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum and Battery Park are all fantastic as well. There are at least 20 other significant sites well worth visiting. He'll be able to see a lot of important places up close, and get a sense how wars effect one place over time.
posted by EvilPRGuy at 7:45 PM on February 7, 2011
Floyd Bennet Field, The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum and Battery Park are all fantastic as well. There are at least 20 other significant sites well worth visiting. He'll be able to see a lot of important places up close, and get a sense how wars effect one place over time.
posted by EvilPRGuy at 7:45 PM on February 7, 2011
The WWI memorials in Europe are the gold standard, I think.
In the US: Seconding the Boston area, Lexington, Concord, etc ("by the rude bridge that arched the flood"etc, shot heard round the world, Paul Revere's Ride...); Mystic Seaport in Connecticut has lots of historic ships and educational stuff about them if he's interested in naval history; New England is compact enough that they could drive around and see a lot of Revolutionary War, and French and Indian War sites.
Seconding Quebec's Plains of Abraham. Quebec City is French speaking.
Fort Ticonderoga is interesting.
DC has some great memorials - Vietnam, Korea, the new WWII one; and of course Arlington National Cemetery which was deliberately sited on the grounds of Robert E Lee's former home.
And for a real dream trip: go to Gallipoli in Turkey. More moving for Aussies and New Zealanders, but very moving all the same.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:00 PM on February 7, 2011
In the US: Seconding the Boston area, Lexington, Concord, etc ("by the rude bridge that arched the flood"etc, shot heard round the world, Paul Revere's Ride...); Mystic Seaport in Connecticut has lots of historic ships and educational stuff about them if he's interested in naval history; New England is compact enough that they could drive around and see a lot of Revolutionary War, and French and Indian War sites.
Seconding Quebec's Plains of Abraham. Quebec City is French speaking.
Fort Ticonderoga is interesting.
DC has some great memorials - Vietnam, Korea, the new WWII one; and of course Arlington National Cemetery which was deliberately sited on the grounds of Robert E Lee's former home.
And for a real dream trip: go to Gallipoli in Turkey. More moving for Aussies and New Zealanders, but very moving all the same.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:00 PM on February 7, 2011
If you go to Europe, I'd suggest adding a trip to Sarajevo and Srebenica. There's a very common tour that visits the tunnel, the surrounding mountains where snipers hid, and one of the big cemeteries. As a very recent war, it would add an interesting perspective to an international trip.
posted by acidic at 8:01 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by acidic at 8:01 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Also, if international travel is on the table, they could think about England/Scotland, which is a fairly compact area with historical sites from many eras - pre-Roman settlements, Hadrian's Wall, Battle of Hastings, fortifications, castles, ruined monasteries, etc all the way up.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:05 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:05 PM on February 7, 2011
I'm from Texas and have been to the Alamo more times than I would have ever wanted to. Yes, it's pretty small, but it's also pretty cool, and I bet it's even cooler to young boys interested in war stuff. It is pretty small, but there are some other things to do in Central Texas (hell, San Antonio has a pretty decent amount of touristy stuff, including historical stuff (Spanish missions, etc.), gardens, the Hemisfair tower, the Riverwalk, art museums, and theme parks (Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Sea World [yuck, but it has a water park], and another water park). I'm about to live in SA, and it's not that awesome live, but it's got a lot of good touristy stuff for kids and teens. There are a lot of Texas/Mexico battle sites in Texas that you could also visit.
But wait, if international travel is on the list, then I would maybe not choose the Alamo/San Antonio/Texas/America, but hey, it's a cheap place to visit.
posted by elpea at 8:10 PM on February 7, 2011
But wait, if international travel is on the list, then I would maybe not choose the Alamo/San Antonio/Texas/America, but hey, it's a cheap place to visit.
posted by elpea at 8:10 PM on February 7, 2011
I know this isn't what you're looking for, but I took a really excellent day tour of the WWI battlefields around Ypres years ago. The most impressive part of it was a visit to this museum which preserves a chunk of the Ypres battlefield essentially as it was nearly 100 years ago. It was really memorable experience to walk through a section of trench surrounded by shell holes and trees that were shattered about four feet off the ground by the shells. The rest of the tour was impressive as well; seeing the huge graveyards really brought home the scale of the slaughter.
I spent a day biking around the D-Day beaches in France on a separate trip later - this had a personal significance to me as my grandfather landed on Omaha beach on D-Day, but the WWI sites in Belgium were more impressive.
posted by pombe at 8:14 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
I spent a day biking around the D-Day beaches in France on a separate trip later - this had a personal significance to me as my grandfather landed on Omaha beach on D-Day, but the WWI sites in Belgium were more impressive.
posted by pombe at 8:14 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
I've never been there, but another obvious Revolutionary War site would be Valley Forge.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:17 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:17 PM on February 7, 2011
Try Fort Henry in Kingston Ontario Canada. The parade square drills and sunset ceremonies are pretty amazing. They use all the authentic uniforms, equipment, and drill from the British North American army of 1867. There is a nice museum there, too.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 9:28 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 9:28 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Nthing both New Orleans and London. In addition to the many historical sites, both are cities that practically ooze with history.
posted by Sara C. at 9:42 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by Sara C. at 9:42 PM on February 7, 2011
Also in Washington DC: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. I can't recommend it enough.
posted by SisterHavana at 9:48 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by SisterHavana at 9:48 PM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
Thirding the Australian War Memorial. If there is a place that truly gives you a perspective on what war means, it is this place.
posted by dg at 10:53 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by dg at 10:53 PM on February 7, 2011
Gettysburg, PA.
posted by XhaustedProphet at 11:45 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by XhaustedProphet at 11:45 PM on February 7, 2011
The WWI memorials in Europe are the gold standard, I think.
Agreed. Their scale -- for instance, the Canadian memorial at Vimy Ridge -- reflects the Great War's being considered the "war to end all wars", which carries obvious irony.
Speaking of scale: the Douaumont ossuary, though being able to see the bones of the 130,000 laid there might be a little too much reality. Verdun has fewer English-speaking visitors than other parts of the Western Front, but enough that you wouldn't need a guide. The transformation of entire villages into memorials -- destroyed during the battle, uninhabitable afterwards -- is equally powerful.
posted by holgate at 11:53 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Agreed. Their scale -- for instance, the Canadian memorial at Vimy Ridge -- reflects the Great War's being considered the "war to end all wars", which carries obvious irony.
Speaking of scale: the Douaumont ossuary, though being able to see the bones of the 130,000 laid there might be a little too much reality. Verdun has fewer English-speaking visitors than other parts of the Western Front, but enough that you wouldn't need a guide. The transformation of entire villages into memorials -- destroyed during the battle, uninhabitable afterwards -- is equally powerful.
posted by holgate at 11:53 PM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Battleship Cove in Fall River is worth a visit. Current home of USS Lionfish (a WWII fleet submarine), USS Joseph P. Kennedy (a 1950's destroyer), USS Massachusetts (WWII battleship), USS Fall River (WWII cruiser), and a lot of other things.
And while you're in the area, you can go up to Boston and see some of the monuments from the Revolution.
And then visit USS Constitution.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 12:14 AM on February 8, 2011 [1 favorite]
And while you're in the area, you can go up to Boston and see some of the monuments from the Revolution.
And then visit USS Constitution.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 12:14 AM on February 8, 2011 [1 favorite]
it's a bit far, but English speaking - Australia's Avenues of Honour
Wikipedia
Bacchus Marsh
Ballarat
So many towns in Victoria Australia have them, and they signify a tree (usually elm) for each missing serviceman in the 1914-18 war. When you drive down the big ones, Bacchus Marsh and Ballarat and realise how many young people from these towns were lost (and for what?) - it's well, beautiful and a bit depressing.
posted by the noob at 2:18 AM on February 8, 2011
Wikipedia
Bacchus Marsh
Ballarat
So many towns in Victoria Australia have them, and they signify a tree (usually elm) for each missing serviceman in the 1914-18 war. When you drive down the big ones, Bacchus Marsh and Ballarat and realise how many young people from these towns were lost (and for what?) - it's well, beautiful and a bit depressing.
posted by the noob at 2:18 AM on February 8, 2011
I should add that if you go to Kingston Ontario Canada to see Fort Henry, there are also a set of very handsome Martello Towers in the area. At least one of them is a museum. (previously on MeFi).
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 3:57 AM on February 8, 2011
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 3:57 AM on February 8, 2011
Okay, what about Revolutionary War sites? North Carolina and South Carolina have quite a few, and New York and Massachusetts are just lousy with 'em.
posted by valkyryn at 4:54 AM on February 8, 2011
posted by valkyryn at 4:54 AM on February 8, 2011
I think you can go just about anywhere in the US to see a Civil War re-enactment which is very cool. There are plenty of old forts around the states that have fascinating war records like Fort Sumter. Also, the history of wars in the US is not limited to the Civil War. You can find monuments and places of interest for the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Indian Wars, and even the Mexican-American war.
posted by JJ86 at 6:23 AM on February 8, 2011
posted by JJ86 at 6:23 AM on February 8, 2011
New York City would be a pretty good choice, too.
For really legit historical sites, you've got Ellis Island, Federal Hall, the United Nations, The World Trade Center site, tall ships at South Street Seaport, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Stonewall Inn, to name only the first few places that come to mind.
He likes military history and battlefields? The battle of Long Island took place in Brooklyn, and there are various historical sites and monuments associated with it throughout the borough.
And then of course there's all the piles of museums. There's the Metropolitan Museum and the Brooklyn Museum (technically art museums, but with a lot of historical stuff - the period rooms in both museums are especially interesting if you're a history buff), The New York Historical Society, Museum Of The City Of New York, Transit Museum, and the galleries at the New York Public Library on 42nd and 5th. There's the Tenement Museum and Merchant's House. Several museums and cultural centers dedicated to Jewish history. Not to leave out museums dedicated to the Hispanic and Chinese diasporas, American Indians, and even literal sideshow freaks.
All of this is before you get to the places that are just historical in and of themselves. You can barely walk five steps in the West Village without passing somewhere Bob Dylan took a piss or basically every important literary figure of the first half of the 20th century put on a play. The Chelsea Hotel and The Dakota, obviously. And more obscure places like Theodore Roosevelt's birthplace and at least one slave burial ground. And not even mentioning places like Union Square and the Empire State Building which have seen so much history you can't sum it up in a short phrase.
posted by Sara C. at 7:16 AM on February 8, 2011
For really legit historical sites, you've got Ellis Island, Federal Hall, the United Nations, The World Trade Center site, tall ships at South Street Seaport, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Stonewall Inn, to name only the first few places that come to mind.
He likes military history and battlefields? The battle of Long Island took place in Brooklyn, and there are various historical sites and monuments associated with it throughout the borough.
And then of course there's all the piles of museums. There's the Metropolitan Museum and the Brooklyn Museum (technically art museums, but with a lot of historical stuff - the period rooms in both museums are especially interesting if you're a history buff), The New York Historical Society, Museum Of The City Of New York, Transit Museum, and the galleries at the New York Public Library on 42nd and 5th. There's the Tenement Museum and Merchant's House. Several museums and cultural centers dedicated to Jewish history. Not to leave out museums dedicated to the Hispanic and Chinese diasporas, American Indians, and even literal sideshow freaks.
All of this is before you get to the places that are just historical in and of themselves. You can barely walk five steps in the West Village without passing somewhere Bob Dylan took a piss or basically every important literary figure of the first half of the 20th century put on a play. The Chelsea Hotel and The Dakota, obviously. And more obscure places like Theodore Roosevelt's birthplace and at least one slave burial ground. And not even mentioning places like Union Square and the Empire State Building which have seen so much history you can't sum it up in a short phrase.
posted by Sara C. at 7:16 AM on February 8, 2011
Manzanar. Springtime in the high dessert is amazing, and this offers a different perspective than the typical monuments to war.
Death Valley is 3hrs south, Yosemite 3hrs. north. Road trip!
posted by pianomover at 8:05 AM on February 8, 2011
Death Valley is 3hrs south, Yosemite 3hrs. north. Road trip!
posted by pianomover at 8:05 AM on February 8, 2011
This is not exactly responsive to your question, but I think he would really enjoy reading Assassination Vacation, an account of Sarah Vowell's road trip to the sites of Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley's assassinations. It's slightly dark but hilariously funny.
posted by slmorri at 12:43 PM on February 8, 2011
posted by slmorri at 12:43 PM on February 8, 2011
Response by poster: Thank you so much for all of the incredible answers! I've forwarded this thread to my friend and she's excited to have so many options.
posted by nuala at 2:35 PM on February 8, 2011
posted by nuala at 2:35 PM on February 8, 2011
I hope I'm not too late to add this, but a visit to the USS Turner Joy in Bremerton, WA might be in order. The TJ was one of the destroyers involved in the "Gulf Of Tonkin" incident that led to major US involvement in Viet Nam. I visited the TJ perhaps 15 or 16 years ago, and a substantial part of the interior of the ship was open; there was even a menu posted outside the mess listing the infamous SOS as the main course for lunch.
My oldest kid loved climbing all over the superstructure and decks. It's just outside the Bremerton Naval Yard, a major fleet base, surrounded by mothballed carriers, etc. It's also relatively close to places like the Undersea Warfare Museum at Keyport
posted by lhauser at 8:15 PM on February 8, 2011
My oldest kid loved climbing all over the superstructure and decks. It's just outside the Bremerton Naval Yard, a major fleet base, surrounded by mothballed carriers, etc. It's also relatively close to places like the Undersea Warfare Museum at Keyport
posted by lhauser at 8:15 PM on February 8, 2011
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posted by halogen at 6:00 PM on February 7, 2011