I was walking through Arlington National Cemetery last January and happened across a headstone that caused me to freeze in my tracks.  The date first caught my eye.  Then, I realized the significance of the ship listed on the headstone.

The headstone for sailor, Gunners Mate Robert Edwin Kline, of New York, listed him as killed on December 7th, 1941, aboard the battleship USS Arizona. IThe date on the headstone was the same as the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, which caused the U.S. to declare war the following day and enter World War II. 

During the attack, a bomb dropped from a Japanese plane struck the forward section of the Arizona and ignited the forward munitions magazine, causing a catastrophic explosion that sunk the battleship in just nine minutes. 1,177 of her crew were killed that day. A total of 2,388 U.S. military personnel were killed in the attack on Hawaii.

Today is the 67th anniversary of the December 7th attack on Pearl Harbor.  Three days after the attack, the U.S. declared war on Japan, causing Japan’s allies, Germany and Italy, to declare war on the U.S.  The following day Bulgaria declared war on the U.S., followed by Romania on Dec 14th, 1941. The U.S. was involved in the war for the next 4 years.

Today, there is a memorial over the sunken battleship memorial in Pearl Harbor.

Unfortunately, I was unable to learn any more about this fallen hero.

Images – Arlington images from personal collection – ©2008, Jon Rochetti, war photos public domane.,

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This tradition, called “flags in ” has been an annual activity since 1948. Flags are placed on more than 260,000 gravesites at Arlington for Memorial Day. After the three-day weekend, the flags are removed.

At the Tomb of the Unknowns you can watch one of the most dramatic and moving military ceremonies, the Changing of the Guard . Guards or sentinels change every half hour on the hour from April 1st through September 30th (hourly October 1st through March 31).

You can take a self-guided tour of Arlington or take an open-air narrated Tourmobile (recommended) which starts at the Arlington Cemetery Visitors Center and makes stops near the John F and Robert Kennedy Gravesites, Tomb of the Unknowns (Changing of the Guard) and Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial. You can board and reboard Tourmobiles at any of the stops.

Tourmobile tours of Arlington – Cost $7.50 for adults, $1.00 less for seniors and kids 3-11 are $3.50. TourMobiles run 8:30 a.m.- 6:30 p.m. April thru September and 8:30 a.m.- 4:30 p.m. October thru March.

Arlington National Cemetery
1000 North Memorial Drive, at he Memorial Bridge (Virginia side)
Arlington, VA 22211

Tickets – None required and admission to Arlington National Cemetery is free.

Cemetery Days and Hours – Daily from 8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., 5:00 p.m. April 1st to September 30th.

Nearest Metro subway station - Arlington Cemetery – Blue line

Parking – Ample paid parking ($1.25 for the first three hour, then $2.00 per hour thereafter.

Photos: Flickr

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Post from: The DC Traveler