Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Centennial Commemoration Lecture Series
Women, Mothers, and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Written and presented by Dr. Allison S. Finkelstein, Senior Historian, Arlington National Cemetery
For the past 100 years, women—especially mothers—have had a special relationship with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This episode explores these connections and examines the long legacy of how American women have honored the Unknown Soldier.
Listen Here: Women, Mothers, and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Dr. Allison Finkelstein serves as Senior Historian at Arlington National Cemetery. She earned her Ph.D. in history with a specialization in historic preservation from the University of Maryland, College Park. Before coming to Arlington, she worked at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services History Office and Library and the American Battle Monuments Commission. A specialist on military commemoration and women in the World War I era, her first book, Forgotten Veterans, Invisible Memorials: How American Women Commemorated the Great War, 1917-1945, was published by the University of Alabama Press in 2021.
Overseas nurses march in the funeral procession for the World War I Unknown Soldier on November 11, 1921. (National Archives)
Members of the District of Columbia Chapter of the American War Mothers march in the funeral procession for the World War I Unknown Soldier on November 11, 1921. (National Archives)
During the burial of the Unknown Soldier from World War I on November 11, 1921, two war mothers stood together in a place of honor in front of the crypt, on the right side. Mrs. Julia McCudden represented war mothers from Great Britain and Mrs. R. Emmett Digney, the president of the American War Mothers organization, represented American war mothers. (National Archives)
The American War Mothers organization remained committed to honoring the memory of the Unknown Soldier over the years, especially through their annual ceremony at the Tomb each Mother’s Day. At their Mother’s Day ceremony on May 12, 1929, pictured here, SGT. Frank Witchey sounded Taps for their event. Witchey had sounded Taps at the funeral for the Unknown Soldier. (Libary of Congress)
Gold Star Mothers from Missouri at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with General John J. Pershing on September 21, 1930. (Library of Congress)