The Korean War Veterans Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., began carving the first names of 43,000 who perished as a result of the 1950-1953 conflict into stone on Monday, The Washington Post reported.
The $22 million project to add the names of 36,574 American and more than 7,200 Korean combatants comes from donations from the people of both countries, the National Park Service and the memorial foundation that administers the site said.
The project required the installation of 178 underground pilings drilled more than 50 feet down to bedrock, and 19 stainless steel statues depicting an American patrol during the war were refurbished.
Richard Dean, an on-site construction worker, walked over to witness his grandfather's name, ''Col. John R Lovell,'' become immortalized at the memorial.
''I'm without words,'' said Dean, 62. ''It's been a very long time … And [I'm] honored to see my grandfather's name. It's his resting spot for right now.''
Dean is a veteran himself, saying he had previously been deployed to Kosovo and Afghanistan while serving in the military.
''I feel overwhelmed sometimes,'' Dean added. ''I know what these guys went through.''
Other names that will be added include:
Air Force pilot Maj. Felix Asla Jr., who was shot down on Aug. 1, 1952. His body has never been recovered.
Col. Theron H. Whitneybell, who was killed when his jet ran out of gas and crashed on Nov. 13, 1950. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
Air Force Capt. John H. Zimmerlee Jr., who had served in World War II, and was nearly killed when the bomber he was on crashed in the Adriatic Sea, his son said.
The Korean War was a conflict fought between North Korea, with its proxy Soviet and communist Chinese allies, and South Korea with its U.S. ally from June 25, 1950, to July 27, 1953, according to History.com.
The conflict is still technically ongoing today, with the Korean Peninsula divided in an indefinite stalemate between the communist North and the democratic South. Recent talks, however, have indicated it may come to an official close soon, per The Korea Herald.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.