The American Battle Monuments Commission‘s Manila American Cemetery, located in the Philippines, contains the largest number of graves of U.S. military dead from World War II. Here are five things you may not know about Manila American Cemetery. 

Creation of the cemetery 

Though Manila American Cemetery was dedicated in 1960, the first burials took place in 1949. After World War II, the U.S. began to consolidate graves from temporary battlefield cemeteries on remote islands throughout the Pacific. This process took more than 10 years leading up to the dedication, though even today new remains continue to be discovered on islands where Americans fought during the war. 

More than 16,800 individuals are buried at the cemetery, with an additional 36,000 names on the walls of the missing. Of those missing, 505 bronze rosettes have been placed, indicating the individual has been accounted for.  

The Philippine Scouts 

Manila American Cemetery is one of the few ABMC cemeteries where the host nation flag flies beside the American flag daily. This distinction honors the nearly 5,000 Philippine Scouts memorialized at the cemetery, including more than 550 buried at the site. The U.S. Army organized the Philippine Scouts in 1901, and the elite and highly trained military unit of mostly Filipino and Filipino-American soldiers was on the front lines of combat during the war in the Pacific. Many members of the Philippine Scouts were brutalized alongside American counterparts during the Bataan Death March, suffering a disproportionate number of casualties compared to the U.S. forces.  

One of them was Sgt. Nicanor Marco. Born Jan. 10, 1908, Marco served as a sergeant in the 24th Field Artillery Regiment, Philippine Scouts, during World War II. When the war spread across the Pacific and reached the shores of the Philippine Islands, the 24th Field Artillery Regiment was stationed at Fort Stotsenburg on Luzon Island, Philippines. As the conflict intensified, the regiment was deployed to the Bataan peninsula, where they provided essential artillery support in the defense of the region. Despite their courageous efforts, the regiment faced overwhelming Japanese forces, and Marco died May 8, 1942. 

After his death, Marco’s widow requested him to be buried at Manila American Cemetery. He forever rests in Plot B, Row 2, Grave 136, making him one of the more than 550 Filipinos honored at this solemn site.

American and Filipino Olympians  

Four Olympic athletes killed in action during the war in the Pacific theater are buried at Manila American Cemetery—three Americans and one Filipino: 

U.S. Army Sgt. Walter Hasenfus competed with his brother Joseph in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, rowing the C-2 10,000-meter, finishing fifth. The infantryman was killed in action in the South Pacific on Dec. 8, 1944, and is buried in Plot C, Row 13, Grave 17.  

U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Theodore Kara competed as a featherweight boxer for the United States during the 1936 Olympics and won three previous NCAA boxing titles for the University of Idaho. He was declared missing after his plane went missing over the Pacific in 1944. He is commemorated on the Walls of the Missing.   

U.S. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. Farid Simaika was born to a prominent family in Egypt and won both silver and bronze medals in diving for the nation during the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam. He went on to receive American citizenship in 1942 and enlisted in the Army. His plane was believed to have been shot down over Indonesia in 1943. Having been declared missing in action in December 1945, he was listed on the Walls of the Missing. 

U.S. Army, Philippine Scouts, Sgt. Teofilo Yldefonzo competed at the Olympic games for the Philippines in 1928, 1932 and 1936. He was the first Filipino athlete to win an Olympic medal, and for a long time, the only Filipino with multiple Olympic medals to his name. He won back-to-back bronze medals in the 200-meter breaststroke in the 1928 and 1932 games. Yldefonzo became one of tens of thousands who were led on the brutal 65-mile Bataan Death March. It is unclear how or when Yledefonzo died, but his remains were never recovered. He is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing. It wasn’t until 2020 that another Filipino would earn multiple Olympic medals—fellow service member Hidilyn Diaz, a sergeant in the Philippine Air Force who won both silver and the nation’s first gold in weightlifting. 

Trees that tell a story 

The headstones at Manila American Cemetery are aligned in 11 plots forming a circular pattern set among masses of plants that contain genera and species representing the wealth of rare and beautiful flowering trees, shrubs, palms and foliage of the Philippine Islands, the East Indies and the warmer climates of South Asia, Africa and tropical America where the service members buried here fought. 

The trees planted throughout the cemetery are unique among ABMC’s sites and are the living witnesses of the heroes buried here. As you enter the cemetery, stately 60-year-old mahogany trees welcome you to this final resting place. Standing tall at Plot B is a 100-year-old tree identified as Carialla brachiate, providing shades for different generations of loved ones visiting the graves. The Walls of the Missing are protected by 50- to 98-year-old acacia trees planted at the East and West memorials. The trees planted throughout the cemetery also represent the locations where battles were bravely fought, and the greatest sacrifices were made.  

Recognizing “Undas” 

On Nov.1, millions of citizens congregate at local cemeteries in the Philippines to honor their dead during All Saints Day—known as “Undas” in the majority Catholic nation. Manila American Cemetery is no exception, seeing an uptick in the number of family members respectfully visiting the graves of relatives buried there. “Undas” is not a festival or tourist attraction, and while not organized by ABMC, it is recognized as a significant cultural occasion in the Philippines.

ABMC’s mission is to honor the service of the armed forces by creating and maintaining memorial sites, offering commemorative services, and facilitating the education of their legacy to future generations. It was founded in 1923 following World War I, and its 26 cemeteries and 31 monuments honor the service men and women who fought and perished during World War I, World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, as well as some who fought during the Mexican-American War. 

ABMC sites are a constant reminder of Gen. John J. Pershing’s promise that, “time will not dim the glory of their deeds.”  

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Article created with Manila American Cemetery and Historical Services.