Constructed by the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America and dedicated on May 21, 1902, the memorial consists of a granite column in the center of a small grass-covered plaza.

The memorial faces west; to its rear across Lawton Avenue is a flagstone terrace on which are placed four cannon, aimed east.

Cuba had been waging a war of independence against Spain since 1895, an effort largely supported by the United States (which had extensive economic interests on the island).

To ensure the safety of American citizens and property in Cuba, the United States sent the battleship USS Maine (ACR-1) to Havana in late January 1898.

The United States Congress enacted a joint resolution demanding independence for Cuba, and President William McKinley signed it into law on April 20.

On July 8, 1898, Congress enacted legislation authorizing the repatriation of American dead, and appropriating funds for this purpose.

[3] This represented the first time in history that Americans who died in battle overseas were repatriated to the United States for burial.

[12] But Mrs. Capron left for the Philippines to engage in Red Cross work shortly after her lobbying effort began,[10] and no action was taken by Congress.

The genesis of this effort is unclear, but a committee to consider "the subject of a tablet at Arlington in memory of the officers, soldiers, and sailors of the Spanish–American War" was appointed some time prior to the biennial National Council meeting.

[13] The National Council approved a motion to have a tablet erected, but left the design and content up to a committee (to be appointed by the chair), which was given the power to act on the resolution.

However, the winning design was submitted by Society member Edith Bucklin Hartshorn Mason of Rhode Island.

[23] The National Society of Colonial Dames was required to obtain the consent of the Quartermaster Corps for the memorial's design.

True, an officer in the U.S. Army Signal Corps at Fort Myer, served as the representative of the Quartermaster General at the cemetery.

Lyster and another Spanish War Memorial Committee member, Hortense Addison Batré,[24] visited the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, in the summer of 1901, and were impressed by the inscriptions written on the pediment above the main doorway of each exhibit hall.

President Theodore Roosevelt permitted all civilian and military government employees to be excused at noon so that they could attend the dedication ceremony.

[25][27] Nearly 1,000 members of the Spanish War Veterans—led by Lee M. Lipscomb, their national commander[9]—mustered at 6th and E Streets NW and marched to the cemetery.

[27] A battalion of United States Marines from the Washington Navy Yard and four troop of cavalry from Fort Myer also participated.

[9] The bands played the "Dead March" (a dirge) from the oratorio Saul, and a 40-person choir from St. John's Episcopal Church sang "Onward, Christian Soldiers".

[27] The Spanish–American War Memorial consists of a column of gray granite 54 feet (16 m) high[9] quarried in Barre, Vermont.

[20] A band decorated with 13 stars (representing the original Thirteen Colonies) is carved in high relief on the globe.

[20] A bronze tablet affixed to the front (west face) of the memorial contains the following language:[9] The plinth stands on a larger square base, which sits atop a foundation set in the earth.

Four cannon, mounted on low brick pillars capped with concrete, stand on the eastern edge of this terrace.

The inner two guns are larger and more modern, and were taken from the Spanish Navy armored cruisers Vizcaya and Infanta Maria Teresa.

This 12-by-8-inch (30 by 20 cm) tablet has a small eagle, clutching arrows and olive branches, in high relief at the top.

It is attached to a rough grey granite base 6 inches (15 cm) high, which is set into the earth on the far western side of the grassy plaza.

The book was covered in dark green Levant Morocco leather, and hand-bound by the Ruzicka Bindery of Baltimore.

Although designed to stand on the earth in the cellar of Arlington House, cemetery officials placed it on one of the wooden floors above.

At the time, the building was not a house museum but rather contained the living quarters of the Superintendent of Arlington National Cemetery and office space for him and his staff.