National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day - December 7, the US observance for the 1941 attack
National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7 is the US federal observance remembering the 2,403 US service members and civilians killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Established by Congress in 1994, observed with flag-half-staff and ceremonies at Pearl Harbor. Not a federal holiday.
Civic memorialPublished October 14, 2026
- Observed in
- Where observed
- When
- December
- Frequency
- Same date every year
- Days off
- 1 day - some jurisdictions give time off
- Public status
- Memorial / civic observance - half-mast on government flags
National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7 is the United States federal observance remembering the 2,403 Americans killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in 1941. Established by Congress in 1994, observed with half-staff flags and ceremonies at the USS Arizona Memorial. Not a federal holiday.
The one-line summary
US federal observance every December 7 remembering the 2,403 Americans killed in the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack. Established August 23, 1994 (Public Law 103-308). Observed with flag-half-staff and ceremonies at the USS Arizona Memorial. Not a federal holiday.
Origin and history
National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day was established by Public Law 103-308 on August 23, 1994. The legislation was introduced in Congress by Senator Daniel Akaka of Hawaii and Representative Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii. President Bill Clinton signed the bill into law, calling on Americans to observe December 7 with appropriate ceremonies and activities, including the flying of the US flag at half-staff.
The first official observance was December 7, 1994. The law coincided with the 50th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack and with the growth of survivor and veteran organizations that had advocated for decades for official recognition. The day was designed to be commemorative rather than commemorative-activist - it is observed but not declared a federal holiday, leaving offices, banks, and most businesses open.
The attack
On the morning of December 7, 1941, 353 aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy, launched in two waves from six aircraft carriers under the command of Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, attacked the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The first wave struck at 7:55 AM local time. The attack lasted approximately 110 minutes and achieved near-total tactical surprise: the US fleet was caught at anchor, with most aircraft parked wing-to-wing on airfields.
The most devastating single loss was the USS Arizona, sunk with the loss of 1,177 of her 1,512 crew when a 1,760-pound armor-piercing bomb detonated the ship\'s forward ammunition magazines. The USS Oklahoma capsized after multiple torpedo hits, killing 429. A total of four battleships were sunk, four damaged, three cruisers damaged or sunk, three destroyers damaged, and one minelayer damaged. 347 aircraft were destroyed or damaged. The attack killed 2,403 Americans and wounded 1,178 others.
How it is observed
The central observance is the ceremony at the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor, jointly operated by the National Park Service and the US Navy. The ceremony begins at 7:55 AM with a moment of silence marking the start of the attack. The names of those killed are read aloud, traditionally by Navy personnel, and a missing-man formation flyover typically closes the ceremony. Survivors of the attack (now in their late 90s and beyond) are invited to attend and share their stories.
Across the United States, veterans organizations (especially the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, the Military Order of the World Wars, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars) host local ceremonies at memorials, military bases, and veterans hospitals. Many cities with Pearl Harbor ties (Honolulu, San Diego, Norfolk) host larger observances. The flag is flown at half-staff throughout the day from sunrise to sunset.
Legal status
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day is a federal observance under 36 U.S.C. section 128, not a federal holiday under 5 U.S.C. section 6103. Government offices, banks, the US Postal Service, and the bond markets remain open. The NYSE and NASDAQ are open. Most private employers operate normally. Some schools and military installations choose to close or hold special programming.
The half-staff flag order applies for the entire day from sunrise to sunset, signed annually by the President as a proclamation under 36 U.S.C. section 175. Pearl Harbor Survivors Association membership has declined dramatically since 2010 as the cohort ages; as of 2025 fewer than 100 verified survivors of the attack remained alive, with most now in their 100s.
The USS Arizona Memorial
The USS Arizona Memorial spans the sunken hull of the battleship Arizona in Pearl Harbor. Designed by Honolulu architect Alfred Preis, a German-American who had been interned during WWII, the memorial was dedicated on May 30, 1962. The structure is 184 feet long, with a central opening that straddles the sunken hull and a shrine room at the far end containing a marble wall inscribed with the names of those killed.
The memorial is one of the most-visited sites in Hawaii, attracting over 1.8 million visitors annually. It is administered jointly by the National Park Service and the US Navy, and is accessible only by Navy-operated shuttle boat from the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center. Adjacent sites include the USS Oklahoma Memorial (dedicated 2007), the USS Utah Memorial, and the Pacific Historic Parks Pearl Harbor Memorial complex.
Aftermath
The day after Pearl Harbor, December 8, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered his famous "date which will live in infamy" speech to Congress, asking for a declaration of war against Japan. Congress declared war with only one dissenting vote (Representative Jeannette Rankin of Montana). Germany and Italy declared war on the United States on December 11, 1941, formalizing the US entry into the European theater.
Pearl Harbor reshaped US defense policy in two major ways. First, the inadequacy of naval intelligence and signal intelligence prior to the attack led to the creation of the Office of Strategic Services (predecessor to the CIA) and a more integrated military intelligence apparatus. Second, the loss of battleship power accelerated the Navy\'s shift to aircraft carriers as the capital ships of modern naval warfare - a shift that would prove decisive in the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway in 1942.
Pearl Harbor Remembrance by the numbers
Sources
- 36 U.S.C. section 128 (Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day): law.cornell.edu
- Public Law 103-308 (August 23, 1994).
- USS Arizona Memorial, National Park Service: nps.gov/valr
- Pearl Harbor Survivors Association historical records.
- Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library, "Day of Infamy" speech (December 8, 1941).