Museum honors sacrifice, service of WWII Pacific vets

Interweaving the stories of America, China, Japan, Korea and other Asian countries, the story about how World War II was won in the Pacific can be found in Fredericksburg at the National Museum of the Pacific War.

04/26/2023 12:46 PM (update 07/21/2023 12:29 PM)

The National Museum of the Pacific War is one of Fredericksburg’s largest tourist attractions. It tells the story of World War II, from the war’s beginning to Japan’s formal surrender aboard the USS Missouri. — Standard-Radio Post file photo.

Formerly known as the Nimitz Museum, in honor of Fredericksburg’s native son, Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the National Museum of the Pacific War is located at 340 East Main Street and honors the more than 100,000 Americans who gave their lives in the war against Japan by “truthfully and respectfully telling the story of their struggles, their sacrifices and their triumphs.”

They also honor the eight million Americans who served in World War II.

Nimitz is memorialized with an eight foot bronze statue that stands in the open area known as Nimitz Platz.

The museum strives to teach the history and lessons learned from the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II and to offer educational platforms for their application to current and future national security issues. It also strives to preserve the memories of those who served there and those who never returned home.

The museum also seeks to facilitate programs that honor and support all veterans, past and present.

The museum does this with their 33,000-square-foot exhibit area that features 40 media installations, approximately 900 artifacts in 97 climatecontrolled cases, 15 macro-artifacts and hundreds of photographs.

The museum occupies six acres and has become one of the elite military museums in the nation.

The attractions include the Admiral Nimitz Museum, George H.W. Bush Gallery, the Japanese Garden of Peace, the Memorial Courtyard, the Plaza of Presidents, the Nimitz Education and Research Center and the Pacific Combat Zone.

The Admiral Nimitz Museum houses exhibits on the life and career of Nimitz, who fought in World War II, the Cailloux Education Center and the Admiral Nimitz Grand Ballroom and Mezzanine.

Exhibits in the George H.W. Bush Gallery convey the shock and destruction of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Within the gallery is an HA-19, one of the five Japanese two-man submarines that took part in the attack.

In the Memorial Courtyard, the museum honors the individuals, ships and units that fought in the Pacific Theater.

The archives of the National Museum of the Pacific War holds thousands of manuscripts, official documents, photographs and recorded interviews with Pacific War veterans.

All the archives are housed in the Nimitz Education and Research Center which is open to the public by appointment only.

The museum stages Living History Reenactments that put viewers on the front line at the Pacific Combat Zone, located two blocks east of the main museum.

The WWII Pacific Combat Program features 60-minute shows which immerse visitors in battle, dramatically showing the equipment, weapons and tactics of the U.S. Army and Marines and the Imperial Japanese Army.

Admission for the show is $10 for adults; $5 for students; and free for children five and under. Ear plugs are provided.

Advance tickets are available at the George H.W. Bush Gallery or the Admiral Nimitz Museum. Walk-up tickets are sometimes available at the combat zone prior to the program.

Pacific Combat Zone

The Pacific Combat Zone is a unique two-acre indoor/outdoor exhibit and one of the museum’s most popular venues.

In March 2017, the museum finished its $8 million renovation to the complex.

The live reenactments are staged eight times a year on the weekends and feature history and details on weapons used during the war, as well as a display of the weapons being used.

The finale features a look into a war-like scenario with the weapons being fired.

The big change to the new Pacific Combat Zone is that the exhibits are no longer only accessible by guided tour.

Guests can come and spend as long as they would like exploring the exhibits in Phase 1.

Upon entering the Pacific Combat Zone, guests can see a to-scale map of the Pacific Theater and take time to walk the map and get an understanding of just how large this theater of WWII was.

Entering the PT 309 boat exhibit allows guests onto the deck of a PT boat tender as it is being equipped for a mission.

This exhibit includes video displays covering a PT boat mission, an oral history kiosk, and the history of PT 309 “Oh Frankie,” the boat on display.

The TBM exhibit takes museum-goers below deck of an aircraft carrier where they will see up close a TBM Avenger getting ready for a mission.

Visitors can take time to test their skills on tabletop games stationed in front of the plane.

They can launch torpedoes at enemy ships, defend a ship from enemy attack by manning an anti-aircraft gun, and land the pilot safely on the deck by waiving him in on his approach.

This exhibit also includes video displays, information panels about flight missions, and artifacts.

The National Museum of the Pacific War is open Wednesday through Monday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except for Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas. Admission is free for WWII veterans. Senior citizens 65 and older are $16; adults are $24; military members (active or retired) with an I.D. are $14; children six and over, along with students who have ID, are $10; children five and under are free. For more information about rates, along with questions about volunteering at the museum, call 997- 8600 or visit the museum online at www.pacificwarmuseum.org.