USS Maine Mast Memorial

The USS Maine Mast Memorial stands at Arlington National Cemetery and features the original mast of the battleship mounted on a circular concrete base shaped like a gun turret. Behind the structure stand two captured Spanish mortars taken during the conflict.

The USS Maine exploded on February 15, 1898, in Havana Harbor, killing 264 crew members and triggering the Spanish-American War. This explosion became a turning point that reshaped American military engagement and foreign policy.

Granite panels surrounding the memorial list the names and former occupations of every sailor and marine lost in the explosion. This personal accounting turns the memorial into a place where visitors can trace individual stories and understand the human cost of the disaster.

The memorial sits on Sigsbee Drive within Arlington National Cemetery and is walkable like most sites in the grounds. Plan time to read through the granite panels and observe the surrounding war artifacts at a comfortable pace.

The original ship bell of the USS Maine is permanently welded into the door of the concrete base, a detail many visitors overlook. This integration of an actual ship part directly connects the memorial to the lost vessel itself.