The famous statue of the raising of the flag on Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima resides in Washington, D.C. It was dedicated by President Eisenhower on November 10, 1954.
The statue here in Harlingen is the original working model. The statue was sculpted by Felix DeWeldon based on the Pulitzer-winning photograph taken by Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945. Two months of fierce fighting on the tiny island had cost the lives of 6800 Marines, soldiers, and sailors and 20,000 Japanese.
Twenty-seven Congressional Medals of Honor were awarded.

The 6 men who raised the flag were Mike Strank, Harlon Block, Franklin Sousley, Rene Gagnon, Ira Hayes, and John Bradley.
Sgt. Strank, Cpl. Block, and PFC Sousley all died soon after they raised the flag on Iwo Jima.

UPDATE: Joe Rosenthal passed away on 21 August 2006 at the age of 94.