ARLINGTON, Texas — The National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington is expected to open in time for National Medal of Honor Day next year, March 25.
The National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation announced Arlington would be the site for the museum in 2019 and broke ground on the site in 2022.
The 100,000-square-foot museum will have 31,000 square feet dedicated to exhibition galleries focused on the history of the Medal of Honor and members of the U.S. armed forces who received it. It’s also expected to feature an education center, conference and event space, and an outdoor amphitheater.
Designed by architect Rafael Viñoly, the museum will sit on five acres adjacent to other attractions, including Six Flags Over Texas, AT&T Stadium, Globe Life Field, Choctaw Stadium, and more.
The new date anticipated for the museum’s opening was recently announced during an event at Arlington City Hall honoring Medal of Honor recipient Colonel Neel E. Kearby. The museum’s theater will be named after Colonel Kearby.
Kearby earned the Medal of Honor for his actions as an Army Air Force fighter pilot in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was born in Wichita Falls, Texas. He graduated from Arlington High School and the University of Texas at Arlington before joining the Army Air Corp.
Kearby earned the Medal of Honor for his actions as an Army Air Force fighter pilot during World War II. He was born in Wichita Falls and graduated from Arlington High School and the University of Texas at Arlington before joining the Army Air Corps. He died on March 5, 1944, after his plane was shot down over New Guinea, and he’s buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in Dallas.
“With the naming of the Colonel Neel Kearby Theater, we celebrate and honor this Texas hero’s tremendous legacy of service and sacrifice, appreciating that the city he called home will soon be home to a national museum dedicated to preserving and sharing stories like his and the values they represent,” said National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation President and CEO Chris Cassidy. “Today begins our one-year countdown to officially opening our doors on National Medal of Honor Day 2025, and we’re thrilled to kick off our ‘March to Grand Opening’ with this tribute to an Arlington native who went above and beyond in service to our country.”
“We are proud to be partners with the National Medal of Honor Museum and look forward to dedicating this new theater in honor of Colonel Kearby when the Museum opens its doors one year from today,” said Arlington Mayor Jim Ross. “Colonel Kearby is not just one of Arlington’s greatest heroes, but one of America’s greatest heroes. We can’t wait to welcome Arlington residents and visitors from across the country and around the world to a place where they can learn from and be inspired by the fewer than 4,000 brave Americans who earned our nation’s highest honor for valor in combat – including Arlington’s own Colonel Neel Kearby.”
For more information about the museum, visit their website.
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