May 31, 2021
The American flags waving in front of our homes and businesses this Memorial Day weekend should remind us of the tragedy of war and the ultimate sacrifice made by someone’s beloved spouse, child, sibling, or parent. My heart goes out to family members who have suffered such a loss. Unlike the Fourth of July, Memorial Day is not a day for fireworks and celebrations.
In 1946, President Truman signed a proclamation concerning the disposition of American war dead of World War II. In May 1947, my father, Howard Peckham, was appointed head of the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) in Europe, with headquarters in Paris. He cared for the 156,000 U.S. military dead of the European Theater who, at that time, were resting in 37 temporary cemeteries scattered throughout Europe. His command also diligently searched throughout that continent for our missing.
The next of kin were given the option of having their loved one returned home or reinterred in one of the ten permanent American cemeteries being built in Europe. Although most family members chose the first option, thousands did not. Mrs. George S. Patton, for example, chose the second option. She felt that her husband would have wanted to lay at rest with his men. He is buried at the Luxembourg American Cemetery (formerly called Hamm).
Under my dad, more than 80,000 deceased Americans were sent home; more than 60,000 others were reburied in one of the ten permanent American military cemeteries in Europe. All ten were graded and constructed under his command, and all except one were former temporary sites. Probably the most visited of them overlooks Omaha Beach, and it is movingly shown in the film Saving Private Ryan.
By the middle of 1951, the permanent American cemeteries in Europe had been transferred from the U.S. Army to a civilian agency, which in the future would replace the army’s simple wooden crosses and stars with those of marble. They also built additional structures on the properties, such as statues.
On this Memorial Day, please remember that our flag still proudly waves above those beautiful American cemeteries in Europe; and let us not forget the supreme sacrifice made by our fallen heroes who rest there.
(My father and Grand Duchess Charlotte gave speeches at the Hamm American Cemetery in Luxembourg on Memorial Day 1947. Below is the link. )
General Peckham and Grand Duchess Charlotte: Memorial Day Broadcast from Luxembourg – YouTube