Blue Star Memorial By-Way A tribute to the Armed
Humboldt County, Humboldt County, California
Marker Inscription
Blue Star Memorial By-Way A tribute to the Armed forces of America Southern Humboldt Garden Club National Council of State Garden Clubs, Inc.
Erected by National Garden Clubs, Inc.
The Story
The Blue Star Memorial program began in 1945, when New Jersey garden clubs planted flowering dogwoods along a highway to honor the servicemen and women of World War II. The blue star echoed the service flags families hung in their windows, one star for each loved one in uniform. The National Garden Clubs carried the idea nationwide, and markers like this one in the redwood country of southern Humboldt County extend the tribute to all who have served.
Why it matters
Blue Star Memorial markers turned ordinary American highways into a coast-to-coast avenue of remembrance, a grassroots, garden-club tribute to military service that endures on roadsides in nearly every state.
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Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
United States Veterans
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Erected in 1991 by the pioneers of Shelter Cove, this plaque offers plain gratitude to all who served in the nation's armed forces. Set on California's remote "Lost Coast," it reflects a small community's wish to honor its veterans across the generations. It names no single war, standing instead for collective service and sacrifice.
Coast Guard Helicopter 6541
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Blue Star Memorial By-Way – Humboldt (1986)
Humboldt County, CA
Placed by the Southern Humboldt Garden Club in 1986, this Blue Star Memorial By-Way marker honors the armed forces of America. It is part of a national program launched by garden clubs in the mid-1940s to honor World War II servicemembers and later widened to all who serve. The blue star recalls the service flags families hung in their windows during wartime.
Blue Star Memorial By-Way – Humboldt County
Humboldt County, CA
This Blue Star Memorial By-Way marker, placed by the Southern Humboldt Garden Club under the National Council of State Garden Clubs, pays tribute to the armed forces of America. It belongs to a program garden clubs began in the mid-1940s to honor World War II servicemembers before expanding it to all who have served. The blue star draws on the service banners families displayed in their windows during the war.