Between the War for Independence and Operation Iraqi Freedom, the armed forces of the United States have participated in twenty-one principal wars and in numerous smaller conflicts and operations. In each of these American men and women have paid a high price for the nation's freedom, selflessly sacrificing life or limb for an honorable cause - these are the men and women the Thornton Veterans Memorial will honor.

In the following pages we have provided a general summary of each conflict. It is not meant to be an all inclusive list of actions in which our nations veterans have served - there have been many more. To view each separate engagement you may either click on the links below or utilize the menu to the right.

• Revolutionary War, 1775 - 1783
  
• Naval War with France (Undeclared), 1798 - 1801
  
• War with the Barbary Pirates, 1801 - 1805 and 1815
  
• War of 1812, 1812 - 1815
  
• Mexican War, 1846 - 1848
  
• Civil War, 1861 - 1865
  
• Spanish-American War, 1898
  
• China Relief Expedition, 1900 - 1901
  
• Pacification of Nicaragua, 1912 - 1913
  
• Unites States Interventions in Mexico, 1914 - 1917
  
• Pacification of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, 1915 - 1918
  
• World War I, 1917 -1918
  
• World War II, 1941 -1945
  
• Korean Conflict, 1950 -1953
  
• Vietnam War, 1964 -1973
  
• Lebanon Peacekeeping Mission, 1982 - 1984
• Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, 1990 - 1991
  
• Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), 2001 - Current
  
• Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003 - Current
  
• American Prisoners of War (20th Century)

The information contained herein is a compilation of a variety of sources. Primary sources of information for the figures, explanatory text and illustrations appearing below include the National Archives and Records Administration; U.S. Navy Historical Center; Department of Defense; Department of Veterans Affairs; and The Oxford Companion to American Military History.

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