Kansas City’s National World War I Museum and Memorial is the United States’ official museum and memorial dedicated to the First World War. Opened in 1926 as the Liberty Memorial, it grew from a major local effort begun in 1919 to honor those who served, with thousands of contributors funding its construction. Centered on the Liberty Tower, the site combines monumental architecture with a largely underground museum that interprets the war from its origins to the armistice and peace settlement. Its collections, research center, and later restoration and expansion have made it both a major civic landmark and one of the world’s largest centers for World War I history.