Oise-Aisne American Cemetery and Memorial

[David]

OISE-AISNE AMERICAN CEMETERY AND MEMORIAL

The Oise-Aisne American Cemetery and Memorial in France contains the remains of 6,012 American war dead, most of whom lost their lives while fighting in this vicinity in 1918 during the First World War. Their headstones, aligned in long rows on the 36.5-acre site, rise in a gentle slope from the entrance to the memorial at the far end. The burial area is divided into four plots by wide paths lined by trees and beds of roses; at the intersection are a circular plaza and the flagpole.

The memorial is a curving colonnade, flanked at the ends by a chapel and a map room. It is built of rose-colored sandstone with white trim bearing sculptured details of wartime equipment. The chapel contains an altar of carved stone. Engraved upon its Walls of the Missing are 241 names. Rosettes mark the names of those since recovered and identified. The map room contains an engraved and colored wall map portraying the military operations in this region during 1918.

The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. except December 25 and January 1. It is open on host country holidays. When the cemetery is open to the public, a staff member is on duty in the Visitor Building to answer questions and escort relatives to grave and memorial sites.


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How to Get There

GPS Coordinates: N49 12.134 E3 32.894

Oise-Aisne American Cemetery lies 1½ miles east of Fère-en-Tardenois (Aisne), France, which is 14 miles northeast of Chateau-Thierry. It may be reached by automobile from Paris by toll autoroute A-4 taking the Chateau-Thierry exit (49½ miles), turn left onto highway D-1, continue to Fère-en-Tardenois (12 miles). Hotels are available in Chateau-Thierry, Reims (27 miles) and Soissons (18 miles). There is rail service to each of these cities where taxicabs may be hired.