Veterans Day

The history of Veterans Day: The last two minutes of fighting. Taken at 10:58 AM, 11 November 1918, just before the Armistice went into effect; men of the 353rd Infantry, near the church at Stenay, Meuse, wait for the end of hostilities.

The history of Veterans Day: Unknown US soldier from the North Africa American Cemetery.

The graves of veterans are marked with American flags in Palmdale, Calif., during a Veterans Day ceremony at Desert Lawn Memorial Park.

Retired Reservist CAPT Ed Bryant, right, salutes during a Veteran’s Day gathering at the War Memorial in Ispwich, Mass., Nov. 11, 2003. A flag from a D-Day landing craft on Omaha Beach in 1944, at left, was displayed during the ceremony.

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFPN) -- Fifth-graders fold the American flag during Oak Hill Elementary School's Veteran's Day walk. Oak Hill students have been doing the walk for 30 years.

Knollwood Elementary School Veterans Day commemoration: Students from kindergarten through fifth grade classes presented beautiful, handmade bookmarks and letters they had prepared for veterans. The letters were artfully placed in patriotic book covers.

Pensacola Beach, Fla. Students at the Officer Candidate School prepare to march in the Veteran's Day parade at Pensacola Beach, Fla.

Thirty Soldiers from 2nd Bn., 14th Inf. Rgt., march down Fifth Avenue during the New York City Veterans Day parade.

Veterans Day 2003, Bayview Cemetery, Ketchikan, Alaska.

A tribute to fallen comrades in commemoration of Veterans Day and a cannon salute in honor of 18 2nd BCT Soldiers who died while serving in the brigade’s first deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

History of Veterans Day: These words were part of President Harry Truman's address to a joint session of Congress April 16, 1945, shortly after President Franklin Roosevelt died. President Truman's address made clear that the United States would see World War II through to the end.

A fallen Soldier display for Sgt. DeForest Talbert was unveiled during a Veterans Day program at Alexandria's Black History Museum.

U.S. Army and Iraqi Army Soldiers observe the Veterans Day holiday at Forward Operating Base Sykes in Tall Afar, Iraq.

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) navigates under the Bay Bridge, after a weekend of liberty and Veterans Day celebrations in the port of San Francisco.

Four Brownie Girl Scouts render honors as Builder Constructionman Jason Bowman salutes during the raising of colors as part of the Naval Air Facility Atsugi Veterans Day observance.

Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Ferlin Espinal, assigned to the Naval Station Pearl Harbor Ceremonial Color Guard, stands at parade rest aboard the Battleship Missouri Memorial during a Veterans Day Sunset Ceremony.

U.S. Navy submarine veterans are honored in a Veterans Day ceremony held on board Naval Station Pearl Harbor at the Parche Memorial.

Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Ferlin Espinal, assigned to the Naval Station Pearl Harbor Ceremonial Color Guard, stands at parade rest aboard the Battleship Missouri Memorial during a Veterans Day Sunset Ceremony.

Sailors prepare to raise the national ensign "Old Glory" during morning colors, at the start of Veterans Day celebrations held aboard the station.

During a Veterans Day Ceremony, Builder 1st Class Scott Heubler, assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Seven Four (NMCB-74) Civil Action Team (CAT) 74-01, shows his respect at the Bloody Nose Ridge Marine Memorial.

Martin Roulin from Bruyers, France, receives a coin for his part in presenting a wreath with his grandfather Pierre Roulin. American forces aided the city of Bruyers in achieving liberation from German occupancy during World War II. On Veterans Day, Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Department of Hawaii hosted the 54th Annual Massing of the Colors Ceremony and tribute to our Armed Services and all War Veterans at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Submarine veterans were honored in a Veterans Day ceremony held onboard Naval Station Pearl Harbor at the Parche Memorial. Among those honored included the 86 lost aboard the recently discovered USS Lagarto (SS 371). It was discovered in May 2005 off the coast of Thailand where it was sunk on May 4, 1945.

Submarine veterans were honored in a Veterans Day ceremony held onboard Naval Station Pearl Harbor at the Parche Memorial. Among those honored included the 86 lost aboard the recently discovered USS Lagarto (SS 371). It was discovered in May 2005 off the coast of Thailand where it was sunk on May 4, 1945.

The wife of a World War II U.S. submarine veteran, tosses a flower into a reflecting pool to honor the memory of one of the 52 submarines lost during World War II at the National Submarine Memorial-West on board Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach, Calif. On this Veterans Day, the Submarine Veterans of World War II transferred ownership of the memorial to the U.S. Navy.

Wreath Greeter, Al Frumkin, left, stands by as members from the Korean War Veterans Association Aloha Chapter presents a wreath in honor of veterans at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific during the Disabled American Veterans 55th Annual Massing of the Colors Veterans Day ceremony.

PEARL HARBOR -- Navy Chaplain Capt. Nat Milton, delivers the invocation at a Veterans Day service held at the Submarine Base, as Commander Submarine Squadron One, Capt. Cecil D. Haney, and U.S. Submarine Veterans of World War II President Paul Ferguson, bow their head in silence.

Sailors and their family members parade the colors in honor of Veterans past, present, and future during the Veterans Day Parade at the Virginia Beach oceanfront.

Veterans Day Community Service, 2005.

Sixteen-year-old Shauna Fleming of Orange, Calif., (second from left), is flanked by her parents, Mike and Robin, and her brother, Ryan (wearing hood) Nov. 11 prior to a special Veterans Day edition of the CBS "Early Show" in New York city. Shauna's "A Million Thanks" program has resulted in deployed servicemembers receiving more than 1.4 million individual messages of gratitude for the American people.

A group of military supporters carry "America Supports You" signs on Veterans Day in New York City.