December 7, 1941.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt referred to that as “a date that will live in infamy.”
The Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and other Oahu military installations that day left scores of people dead and wounded and propelled the United States into World War II.
The USS Arizona became the final resting place for most of the 1,177 of her crew who were killed. Dedicated in 1962, the 184-foot USS Arizona Memorial straddles the midsection of the sunken battleship; the names of all of her lost sailors are engraved on a marble wall in its shrine room.
Tours of the memorial begin with a 23-minute film that explores the people and politics associated with the December 7 attack. After watching the film, visitors are transported to the memorial via a shuttle boat. Oil still leaks from the wreck, leaving slicks on water’s surface—tears, many say, from the Arizona. The memorial was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966; the ship itself was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989.
More than 2,000 free tickets to the USS Arizona Memorial are distributed at the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center every day on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 7:00 a.m. Operated by the U.S. Navy, shuttle boats to the memorial run from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily.