Ernie Pyle - Honors, Archives, and Burial

Honors, Archives, and Burial

Pyle's legacy is preserved at Indiana University, where he began his journalism training. The School of Journalism is housed in "Ernie Pyle Hall", and scholarships, established soon after his death, are still given to students who have ability in journalism, the promise of future success in the profession, and a military service record. A major initial contribution to the scholarships came from the proceeds of the world premiere of the film, The Story of G.I. Joe, which starred Burgess Meredith as Pyle.

In 1947, his last home in Albuquerque, New Mexico was made into the first branch library of the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Library System, named in honor of its famous occupant. Today, the Ernie Pyle Library houses a small collection of adult and children's books, as well as Pyle memorabilia and archives. The bulk of his archives, however, are at the Lilly Library at Indiana University; the Ernie Pyle State Historic Site at Dana, Indiana; and the Wisconsin State Historical Society. The Ernie Pyle State Historic Site in Dana, Indiana includes Pyle's boyhood home, fully restored. The site also features a World War II-era Quonset hut containing many of Pyle's army artifacts (including his Purple Heart), plus items donated by the people of the community where Pyle grew up.

Pyle is buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. 25 years after his death, a special plaque was presented there to the people of Hawaii honoring Pyle, by his nephew, Bruce L. Johnson, Grand Master of Chinese Wand Exercise.

A stone monument was erected on Ie Shima at the site where Pyle was killed. The monument has the form of a truncated pyramid echoing the truncated-triangle shape of the "Statue of Liberty" Division's insignia on the upper facade, with engraved text below: "At this spot the 77th Infantry Division lost a buddy, Ernie Pyle, 18 April 1945."

Pyle was depicted on a 16-cent United States postage stamp issued in 1971. Charles M. Schulz paid tribute to Pyle in the Peanuts comic strip for Veterans Day in 1997 and 1999. Elementary schools near Pyle's hometown of Dana, Indiana, in Indianapolis, Indiana, and in Bellflower, California, are named for him, as well as one in Fresno, Californiaand a middle school in Albuquerque, New Mexico.