 The
memorial park is located at the corner of Central
Avenue and First Street South in downtown Long
Prairie. Army Reservist Kimberly Lawler
skillfully depicted several scenes that tower to a
height of five stories. At the top of which is
a one and a half story steel depiction of the first
flag raising at Mt. Suribachi. The mural
details the battle of Iwo Jima, the battlefield
cemetery at Omaha Beach in Normandy, France and also
includes a tribute to women in the military.
In the shadows of the towering mural, stationed
straight and proud, are Himalayan Black granite
walls with the names of those deceased and living in
Todd County and elsewhere from around the nation who
have given and dedicated their lives to the
assurance of freedom around the world and here at
home. The mural scenes were selected to
personify the savagery and tremendous sacrifice that
all war brings. 28,000 American lives were
lost during the Battle of Iwo Jima alone. Also
at the park are the flags of all branches from the
armed services, including one specially designed for
women in the military, a replica of a band shell
originally constructed in 1927 at Lee Park in Long
Prairie that can hold a 30-piece band, a Sherman
tank, the statue of liberty and park benches to take
in the larger than life significance of all that was
given in the name of freedom.The memorial was
dedicated August 10, 2002 during a ceremony where
the last surviving member of the group to first
raise the flag on Iwo Jima, Charles Lindbergh,
raised a 48 star flag for the first time all over
again, this time with the names of the surviving
soldiers who took part in the battle signed on it.
The Long Prairie Veteran's Memorial Park is
available for tours and events and is the site of
Long Prairie's Thursday Night At The Park summer
concert series.
For more information on the Veterans Memorial Park,
please call the Long Prairie Chamber of Commerce at
320-732-2514 or
contact us.
Veterans
Memorial Park Wall Applicants
Long Prairie Veteran's service clubs
are
accepting applications to place a veteran's name on
the Memorial Wall located in the Veteran's Memorial
Park. Click on
Memorial Wall information for the
application with instructions. Fill out the form and
return it to the address listed at the bottom of the
application. DO NOT SEND ANY MONEY at the present
time. When we receive enough names to fill a wall,
contact will be made via phone, letter or e-mail
informing the applicants of the cost for the name.
Call 320-732-6118 (ask for Dianne) or email:
krouseys@rea-alp.com for
further information.
Download
Application Form
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