In a practice unusual for the time, the names are listed in alphabetical order, without regard to rank, gender, race, or national origin.

Authorized by an act of Congress on June 7, 1924, funds to construct the memorial were provided by the contributions of both organizations and individual citizens of the District.

Inscribed on the base are the names of the 499 District of Columbia "residents and citizens" who died in service, listed in alphabetical order without regard to rank, race, gender, or national origin,[2] together with medallions representing the branches of the armed forces.

The dome inscription reads, "A Memorial to the Armed Forces from the District of Columbia Who Served Their Country in the World War," and the base inscription reads, in part, "The names of the men and women from the District of Columbia who gave their lives in the World War are here inscribed as a perpetual record of their patriotic service to the country.

[4][5][6] In July 2010, the National Park Service announced that restoration work, funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, would soon begin on the memorial.