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Legacy

Honoring CIA's Fallen

The stars carved in marble at the CIA Headquarters Lobby are a simple, silent memorial to employees who have died in the line of duty. Today, and every day, we honor the brave CIA officers who came before us.

CIA's Fallen

The men and women of CIA do their work with no expectation of recognition, knowing that if they make the ultimate sacrifice, the details of their efforts are likely to be known to just a very few. We honor those Agency officers who gave their lives in the service of their country.

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A close up of an engraved star on the memorial wall.

Remembering CIA’s Fallen

Currently, there are 140 stars carved into the marble of the CIA Memorial Wall. The Wall stands as a silent, simple memorial to those employees “who gave their lives in the service of their country.” CIA has released the names of 106 employees on the Wall; the names of the remaining 34 officers must remain secret, even in death.

We hold an annual commemorative ceremony during which the names of our fallen are read aloud for their colleagues and family members.

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Selfless, brave, and supremely dedicated, these exceptional Americans represent the best of CIA.

DCIA William Burns portrait with both American and CIA flags in background.

Director of the CIA

William J. Burns

Decorative glyph for Legacy.

About the CIA Memorial Wall

The men and women of CIA are united by a mission essential to our country. They act as a team, often living overseas and working long hours to help our nation meet difficult intelligence challenges.

When an officer dies in the line of duty, we pay tribute to that colleague and friend. For the people of CIA, that is the Memorial Wall. It is dedicated to those who died while serving their country and it is a lasting reminder of their heroism, the risks inherent in the intelligence profession, and our pledge to put service before self.

The Memorial Wall—and the stories of the people it commemorates—inspire all who carry our mission forward. It affirms our own commitment to the American people. It was with this goal in mind that Master stone carver Harold Vogel created the original design for the Wall—to make an officer’s memory an integral part of our Headquarters, which represents our Agency’s mission.

To learn more about the Wall and its history, read our Memorial Wall Publication.