Montford Point Marine Memorial

The Montford Point Marine Memorial is located near the entrance to downtown Jacksonville at 109 Montford Landing Road. The memorial is part of the Lejeune Memorial Gardens which includes the Beirut Memorial, 9/11 Memorial Beam, Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Eagle, Globe and Anchor reflective pool. Lejeune Memorial Gardens is free and open to the public.

About the Memorial

The Montford Point Marine Memorial is dedicated to all Montford Point Marines and their legacy. A dedication ceremony was held on July 29, 2016 to officially open the Memorial to the public. It is located at Lejeune Memorial Gardens at Montford Landing Road in Jacksonville.  

Elements of the memorial include three concentric circle patterns representing the ripples of influence that changes our nation. These ripples were caused by the Montford Point Marines, the US marine Corps and the American Public. 

An artillery cannon is representative of WWII weaponry that all US Marines used and trained with. The sculpture represents all Montford Point Marines and represents when Montford Pointers shifted from being support personnel to defenders during the war. 

A pillar is at the center of the memorial site and honors Montford Pointers, the US Marine Corps and society during this time, for their unending drive to overcome equality. 

A wall of stars includes approximately 20,000 gold stars representing the number of Montford Point Marines that served during WWII. The absence of names on the wall is symbolic of the fact that no complete roster of Montford Point Marines has ever been located. 

Brief History of the 'Montford Pointers'

In 1942, President Roosevelt established a presidential directive giving African Americans an opportunity to be recruited into the Marine Corps. These African Americans, from all states, were not sent to the traditional boot camps of Parris Island, South Carolina and San Diego, California. Instead, African American Marines were segregated, experiencing basic training at Montford Point, a facility at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. 

Approximately 20,000 African American recruits received training at Montford Point Camp during World War II, starting on August 26, 1942. The initial intent was to discharge these African American Marines after the War. In July of 1948 President Harry S. Truman issued Executive Order #9981 negating segregation. In September of 1949, Montford Point Camp was deactivated, ending seven years of segregation.

On April 19, 1974, Montford Point Camp was renamed Camp Johnson, in honor of the late Sergeant Major Gilbert H. "Hashmark" Johnson. Johnson was one of the first African Americans to join the Corps, a distinguished Montford Point drill instructor and a Veteran of WWII and Korea. The Camp remains the only Marine Corps installation named in honor of an African American. 

The largest number of black Marines to serve in combat during WWII took part in the seizure of Okinawa, with approximately 2,000 seeing action.

Learn more about the Montford Point Marines and the efforts to recognize those heroes at VisitJacksonvilleNC.com/MontfordPointMarines.

For a complete history, please visit the Montford Point Marine Association website at MontfordPointMarines.org