Bedford in Bedford County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Purple Heart

— National D-Day Memorial —

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, 2024

1. Purple Heart Marker

Inscription.
Purple Heart By order issued at his headquarters at Newburgh, New York, 7 August 1782, General George Washington designated the Purple Heart as the Army's Badge of Military Merit. He presented it to three sergeants, and it was not awarded again. President Herbert Hoover revived it on 22 February 1932, the 200th anniversary of General Washington's birth. Soldiers who had been awarded the Meritorious Service Citation Certificate or who had received wound chevrons after 5 April 1917 could request the Purple Heart. Then Executive Order 9277, dated 3 December 1942, authorized the Purple Heart only for wounds but extended the award's applicability to all services. When wounds result in death, the award is posthumously presented to the recipient's next of kin.

Erected by National D-Day Memorial.

Topics and series. This memorial is listed in these topic lists: Military • War, World I. In addition, it is included in the U.S. National D-Day Memorial series list.

Location. 37° 19.852′ N, 79° 32.164′ W. Memorial is in Bedford, Virginia, in Bedford County. It can

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be reached from Overlord Circle 0.4 miles west of Burks Hill Road. The Marker is located on the grounds of the National D-Day Memorial. Touch for map. Memorial is at or near this postal address: 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford VA 24523, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this memorial is in Southwest Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Joseph “Lightning Joe” Lawton Collins (1896-1987) (here, next to this marker); General Leonard T. Gerow (1888-1972) (here, next to this marker); 110th Field Artillery Battalion, 29th Infantry Division (here, next to this marker); 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division (here, next to this marker); 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, 2024

2. Purple Heart Marker

(here, next to this marker); The Eighty Second Airborne Division (here, next to this marker); 1st Engineer Special Brigade (here, next to this marker); Second Naval Beach Battalion (here, next to this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bedford.

Also see . . .
1. The Purple Heart. Wikipedia entry (Submitted on July 20, 2025, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

2. National D-Day Memorial. (Submitted on February 5, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)

Credits. This page was last revised on July 20, 2025. It was originally submitted on February 5, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 169 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 5, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.