by DIANA LAMBDIN MEYER
The field of red poppies that welcomes visitors to the
National World War I Museum in Kansas City has two effects
on those who cross over the glass bridge under the Liberty
Memorial.
The first is a sobering understanding of the significance
of those red poppies. The other is curiosity as to why
there are poppies at all.
“Those who know understand about the poppies, but there are
so many who don’t know World War I history, and for each of
these groups, the experience at the museum is a powerful
one about how this war really changed the world,” says
Kirsten Fitch, who is often found taking tickets on the
opposite side of the glass bridge and answering many of
those first questions.
The National World War I Museum opened December 2 in Kansas
City, the first national monument and museum outside of
Washington, DC. Located at the base of the Liberty
Memorial, a 217-foot-tall obelisk in Penn Valley Park, the
museum is situated on General John Pershing Boulevard,
named for the Missouri native who was the commander of the
American Expeditionary Force in Europe during the war.
The remainder of this article appears in the Spring 2007 issue of Show-Me Missouri. Click here or call 888-715-6334 to subscribe.