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

Annie J. Bronson Veterans Memorial Walk

— National D-Day Memorial —

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, 2024

1. Annie J. Bronson Veterans Memorial Walk Marker

Inscription. Annie J. Bronson was born in Kansas, the daughter of a Union Army Officer. Her father was in Abraham Lincoln's Army during the Civil War. She was not politically active in Massachusetts and had never been to Virginia, but was "fiercely patriotic," a woman of "strongly held views, honest and hard-working beyond compare." In her working life, she served as secretary to John M. Maguire, a professor at the Harvard Law School.

In 1965, Miss Bronson began writing to U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Jr. (I, VA), noting her admiration for his philosophy as expressed through his speeches. They corresponded over several years and ultimately she asked him to handle the disposition of her estate "for the benefit of the United States." He was deeply touched and felt greatly honored to handle with care her hard-earned funds as he felt she wished. When she died in 1970, Senator Byrd created the Annie Bronson Charitable Foundation with the proceeds from Miss Bronson's estate.

With Senator Byrd's death in 2013, his two sons, Harry F. Byrd III and Thomas T. Byrd, became the co-trustees of the Annie Bronson Charitable Foundation. In deciding to distribute the assets of the Foundation, they dedicated a portion to the National D-Day Memorial Foundation to create the Veterans Memorial Walk so that men and women of the Armed Forces could

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be recognized for their service and sacrifice to our nation.

Erected by National D-Day Memorial.

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

Location. 37° 20.335′ N, 79° 32.167′ W. Marker is in Bedford, Virginia, in Bedford County. Memorial can be reached from Overlord Circle, 0.4 miles west of Burks Hill Road. The Marker is located within the Annie J. Bronson Veterans Memorial Walk on the grounds of the National D-Day Memorial. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford VA 24523, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Randolph-Macon Academy (approx. 0.4 miles away); Franklin Delano Roosevelt (approx. half a mile away); Dwight David “Ike” Eisenhower (approx. half a mile away); George Smith Patton (approx. half a mile away); Arthur William Tedder (approx. half a mile away); Operation Fortitude (approx. half a mile away); 29th Ranger Battalion (approx. half a mile away); Exercise Tiger (approx. half a mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bedford.

Also see . . . National D-Day Memorial. (Submitted on February 23, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)

Photographed By Brandon D Cross

2. Annie J. Bronson Veterans Memorial Walk Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 24, 2024. It was originally submitted on February 23, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 39 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 23, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.