In August, 2017 I posted that the U.S. World War 1 Centennial Commission was seeking ideas for suitable inscriptions on the reverse side of the proposed memorial in Pershing Park. You can read that article by clicking here.
My personal favorite quote is “Retreat? Hell, we just got here.” – Capt. Lloyd Williams, 51st Co. 5th Marines, on June 2nd 1918 at Belleau Wood. Nine days later Williams was killed in the same action. You can read all about Capt. Williams here.
The 138th Infantry ’St. Louis’s Own’ (Missouri National Guard) paraded in its home city on May 9th 1919. You can read about this here.
In my post of October 12th last I covered the story of Sgt. Alvin York. You can read the article here.
The controversy about the actual site where York engaged the Germans is between a group called ‘The Sgt. York Discovery Expedition’, which was led by newly-elected Pennsylvania State Senator and U.S. Army Col. (Ret.) Douglas Mastriano, and ‘The Sgt. York Project’ led by Thomas Nolan Ph.D. from Middle Tennessee State University.
That’s the latest news on the national WW1 memorial project at Pershing Park.
On May 16th the U.S. Fine Arts Commission signed off on more of the interpretive design details – the walkways, lighting and sculpture wall are now approved. Architect Joseph Weishaar estimates that the design is now ‘about 75%’ approved.
Since 1982 Douglas County’s “Victory Eagle” has stood outside the main entrance to Dyche Hall on the KU Campus in Lawrence. Recently it was moved to a new location on Memorial Drive. You can read all about the “Victory Eagles” in Blair’s September 30th, 2016 post here, and you can read about the relocation and dedication here.
Capt. Anthony F. “Tony” Wilding (1883-1915) was a New Zealander who was the greatest tennis player of his generation – over a hundred years later he still holds a number of singles records including the most titles won in one season (23 in 1906). He was a 1905 Cambridge graduate and motivated by a strong sense of duty (with the assistance of the First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill), in October, 1914 he was commissioned as a Royal Marine artillery officer. He was briefly seconded to the newly-formed Intelligence Corps, then he joined the Duke of Westminster’s Royal Naval Air Service Armored Car Detachment. On May 9th, 1915, while assisting artillery, he was killed by accurate German counter battery fire at Aubers Ridge in Artois, France.
After the Armistice, the 353rd ‘All Kansas’ Infantry Regiment, of the 89th ‘Rolling W’ Division, spent nearly five tiresome months on occupation duty along the Rhine River near Coblenz, Germany. In case you need to brush up on the story of the 353rd Infantry, you can start by clicking here.
In 1914 the European armies went to war in what amounted to parade uniforms. In some cases, it was felt that brightly colored uniforms would help soldiers to recognize their comrades when in battle. After heavy casualties the armies hurried to introduce field uniforms that gave the soldiers some protection from becoming targets.
The National Football League (NFL) has donated $1 million to the U.S. WW1 Centennial Committee towards the cost of the proposed WW1 memorial at Pershing Park in Washington, DC. With this gift, the NFL honors the memory of its founders, many of whom were WW1 veterans. You can read more here. Other lead contributors to the memorial project include The Pritzker Military Museum and Library, The Starr Foundation, General Motors, Walmart, the major defense contractors Huntington Ingalls and United Technologies, Federal Express, several other foundations and the Pershing family.
Madison Square is a park located at Fifth Ave. and 23RD St. in mid-town Manhattan. From 1879 until 1925 the arena still known as Madison Square Garden was located there. And in the last months of 1918 it was decided to build a victory arch there, too, an American Arc de Triomphe. However, there was insufficient time to build a permanent structure before the New York boys came home in 1919, so the arch was constructed of wood and plaster instead. You can read the whole story here.
© 2019 Kansas WW1
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑
