As The National WWII Museum celebrates year 20, we look back at some collection highlights.

On the eve of Veterans Day, The National WWII Museum in New Orleans will unveil its newest attraction, Expressions of America, a first-of-its-kind nighttime sound and light show celebrating the power of individual Americans to impact the world around them during a time of monumental conflict.

Twenty-five-year-old US Navy Carpenter’s Mate Second Class William R. Burns of Raleigh, North Carolina, has been accounted for more than 80 years after his death. 

Decades after his death, Mikio Hasemoto’s Distinguished Service Cross was upgraded to the Medal of Honor. A second-generation Japanese American serving in the segregated 100th Infantry Battalion, Hasemoto’s sacrifice was one of many initially overlooked because of race.

Hawaii’s initial importance to the US Army was not due to long-term planning, but it would become a crucial piece of a defensive network in the Pacific.