The Midwest Heartland

Well what a busy and memorable Memorial Day weekend I have had!  I have been on a road trip to the Midwest and have seen some wonderful sights and memorials.  The weather was good although a little humid and since it was Memorial Day Weekend most of the sites that I visited were decorated for the occasion -- from the National Cemeteries to the small town memorials.  So I have truly taken the time to remember all those who have served.  And for all of my family and friends who have served in the armed forces -- THANK YOU!  Please know that part of what drives me to develop this project is to help us learn how we and other nations remember those who have given so much for their country.

My journey took me on many, many miles, from interstates to scenic routes (over 1400 miles) - big cities and very small towns and some surprises along the way.  I will give you a brief feel for some of what I experienced. 

I began my foray at the Springfield, Missouri National Cemetery and it was lovely.  The cemetery is unique among the national cemeteries in that there is a wall that separates Union and Confederate burial sites.  Originally there were two separate cemeteries that were combined, but they kept the wall in place as a reminder.  They also have Buffalo Soldiers (African American soldiers from the 1800s) who are also buried here but whose headstones do not exactly align in their rows; this was done deliberately because at the time of the burial, this was a form of segregation.  I did find it ironic that the Confederate headstones were also decorated wih the US flag.  Notice the wall in the background of the picture.

I then had a lovely scenic drive through beautiful forestland to the Minerals Area College in Park Hills, Missouri.  On the campus they have placed a wonderful memorial to a local boy who was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in World War II for his actions on Iwo Jima.  The memorial includes the entire text of his citation.  This unique statue sits among a beautiful and serene college campus.

I next had the opportunity to visit the Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St Louis and I must say this is one of the most beautiful national cemeteries outside of Arlington.  The many many rows of headstones and memorials sit overlooking the Mississippi River and the stately Jefferson Barracks Historic Site.  There are many unique memorials here and I spent some time working my way through all that it offered. 

This cemetery includes a memorial to the women who served at sea as well as the former Vietnam War Unknown Soldier who had been buried in the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington before DNA proved it was Lieutenant Michael Blassie.     The cemetery also has a Medal of Honor recipient from the Indian Wars who fought on the Texas frontier, as well as 2 German and 4 Italian World War II POWs who died in the US and whose remains were not returned.  And finally the American POWs who were held in Hiroshima Japan in 1945 are buried here as a group.

From St Louis I headed across Illinois with my first stop in Springfield, Illinois to see the beautiful Illinois state memorials to World War II, Korea and Vietnam as well as Lincoln's tomb.  I must say Lincoln's tomb is a little strange to see as reminds me more of the ostentatious burial sites of European royalty or even Napoleon, but it is very interesting to see and at the same cemetery as the war memorials.  At the Korean memorial I was greeted by an elderly gentlemen who was cleaning up in the parking lot and who asked me if I knew about the war and the fighting at Chosin Reservoir; I said yes I do and I teach history.  Well this really caught his attention and so he gave me a brochure that he had createed for schools to teach about the war.  He also told me he had raised all of the local money for the memorial.  I talked to him a short time, thanked him for his service and the booklet and hit the road again.

I then drove across to Decatur and Danville, Illinois to photograph some smaller local memorials. In Decatur I had a little bit of hunt as the road into the cemetery was under construction and it was blocked to all but local traffic; needless to say I just drove on down the road and into small but pretty cemetery.  In Danville I was not sure I had a good location of the memorials for which I was searching but as I turned the corner BINGO!  I knew I had reached my destination  -- it was just too obvious with all of the flags.  Each flag had a nametag adhered with individual names -- the same ones that were on the Korean, Vietnam and World War II memorials.

From Danville I headed more southerly toward the college town of Bloomington, Indiana.  I was now on more backroads and enjoyed the small towns.  BUT,  I was astonished as I was simply passing through the small town of Spencer as I turned on the state highway around the Putnam County Courthouse and there in front of my was a World War II German Buzz Bomb (V2 rocket)!!!! Okay I had to stop for this!  I immediately pulled over on the town square (much to the chagrin of some of the local traffic).  I pulled out my camera and headed over to try and discover what on earth this unique artifact was doing in the middle of small-town Indiana.  The V2 is the Putnam County War Memorial honoring all from the county who served in World War II and is one of only 2 buzz bombs in the US (the other is at the Smithsonian).  No reason was given for choosing an enemy weapon to honor American military personnel -- a little quirky I think but certainly eye-catching! LOL  So this will be a great and unique entry in my database.

After a brief stop in Bloomington, I headed south toward my stop for the evening in Jasper. I would be driving through the unique resort at French Lick (home of Larry Bird); the resort has two turn-of-the-century resort hotels that were built near a mineral spring, AND more importantly for me, 2 golf courses including a famous Donald Ross course built in 1917.  I would be playing this course early the next morning; the courses will host the 2010 PGA Championship in a month.  The town is very quaint and the valley in which it is located is quite beautiful, so my drive was very pleasant and scenic.  The next morning I drove through the morning mist and played a fun round of golf before heading back on the memorial trail.

I drove a gorgeous backwoods scenic route to Evansville, Indiana where I was pleasantly surprised by their memorial park along the riverbanks.  Again the memorials were decked out for the holiday.  But I must say what I had really come to Evansville to see was a memorial that is really somewhat unique so far- a Persian

Gulf War memorial.  Few communities have yet included this memorial (I inquired at some places such as

Springfield, etc., but not much interest it seems and I find that sad -- this has now become the "forgotten war" as Korean memorials such as this lovely one in

Evansville have sprouted across the country.  The Persian Gulf war if honored is often just a small plaque attached to previous memorials.  The Evansville memorial, although separated by several miles from the memorial park where the other wars are commemorated, has 2 life-size statues in combat gear and one of these is a female. The first female military personnel in combat gear I have seen or heard about in the US; usually they are nurses or nuns.  These statues show real life-like qualities including individual strands of hair and seem to be by the same artists who created the Korean War memorial statues as well.

After a fun drive across small backroads and a surprise toll bridge across the Ohio River, my last two spots were located in small southern Illinois towns and had a very different feel, in fact the last one was a REAL surprise.  West Frankfort has a poignant World War I statue that shows the pain and sorrow of the loss of so many young men in that conflict.  This statue is part of a larger display at an old railroad depot that is now the War Depot Museum.  Again it was decorated
with flags and was located on the main street of town.  [I now have a knack for finding the small town memorials.]

Now the last memorial was just five miles down the road in Johnston City and while I had a short description of the memorial which made it clear that this would be different, I was still surprised by what I pulled up to find.  This small memorial statue commemorating those from the area who served in World War II is of a soldier lying prone and the words "lest we forget."  The site is eye-catching and unusual because most WWII memorials in the US are not so somber.  So my interest and curiousity is piqued by why such a memorial would be found in a small town in the heartland.  My curiousity was further piqued by an additional set of inscribed granite markers listing the names of all those lost in the wars in WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam as well as quotes; the last inscription though contained the somewhat surprising statement:  "....to honor those who served because they believed that their country asked them to do what was right...." -- this is not a completely positive or supportive statement!  The small memorial which was again on main street was very poignant and moving.  It was also decorated with flags and crosses with the names of those who had been lost. 

From this point I began my trek home and had to dodge some developing thunderstorms.  In late spring-early summer, thunderstorms can develop suddenly across the area in which I was driving so I had to change my route and plans a few times but I managed to mostly avoid the heavy rain.  This was a short test trip for the longer trips I have planned later in the summer and I had fun and observed so much.  I noted some unusual and interesting items -- I saw few trains along the route because in the eastern US roads were built before the trains and so do not always follow the same routes unlike in the west where railroads often came first; Missouri has a funny dichotomy in radio stations -- either religious stations or NPR stations with a few country music stations thrown in.  I never seemed to be out of NPR range across much of the area in which I travelled - unlike what I find in Texas.  Indiana has some beautiful county courthouses, gas was about 10 cents cheaper in Missouri, and there are almost no Sonics in Illinois or Indiana! 

I hope you all had a great Memorial Day weekend and that you remembered to thank those who have served :)

Chicago!

The week after classes ended I had the opportunity to travel to Chicago for a small focus group project and while there of course I visited some of the city's memorials!  Several were just down the street from my hotel such as the State Street bridge across the Chicago River that memorializes those who fought at Bataan and Corregidor and the lovely Vietnam Memorial Park.  Chicago claims this memorial is the largest outside of Washington.

The most stunning memorial I was able to view however took a small trek.  On one afternoon I was joined by a few of my group members who were interested in my project and so after our architectural boat tour we headed on foot down Michigan Avenue.  We walked and walked all the way to 18th Street and Indiana to the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum which houses a most unique sculpture that I was intensely interested in viewing.  I must say we barely arrived before closing and almost missed the small museum building; I decided to walk into one of the businesses on the street to ask where it might be and as I reached for the door handle -- voila!  the Museum name was on the door!    The museum has lost much of its funding and shrunk to only comprise the third floor of the building. 

The sculpture is composed of individual dog tags engraved with the name of each of the U.S. soldiers, sailors, airmen, and nurses who lost their lives in the Vietnam War!  The tags are then hung as a group in the foyer ceiling of the small museum.

 Since my honors students use engraved dog tags for our campus Afghanistan/Iraq War Memorial, I know how labor intensive and time consuming this can be and our memorial only contains around 4000 tags.  This sculpture took over 2 years to create with the artists engraving tags eight hours a day for five days a week - wow!  It is a stunny sight I must say. I also purchased a small poster of the sculpture.

Arlington National Cemetery

When I am in Washington, DC, I always try to make a stop at Arlington National Cemetery as its haunting beauty touches my heart and makes me remember and contemplate.  It is a place of ethereal beauty and sadness, and a place everyone should have to see, as it reminds of the ultimate sacrifice.  On the day I visited, the weather was perfect, sunny but not too warm.  My good friend from high school Leslie Jewell who now resides in Arlington, Virginia, dropped me at the Marine Corps Iwo Jima Memorial and after some great pictures, I walked into the cemetery from a small entrance on the side.  It was quiet here and the rows of white headstones calmed my senses and my mind began to drift back in time -- to place myself among these people to try and honor them by remembering them.

After walking up and down the entrance drive to the cemetery, so that I could photograph the memorials here such as the Spanish-American War, the 4th Division, and the Armored Services,

I went to the visitor's center, obtained a map and bought a few items including a book with the history of the cemetery and descriptions of the areas and graves throughout the location.  I then headed out on my own to walk through as much of the cemetery as I possibly could on this day.  I have taken the official tour of the cemetery previously and so was familiar with some of the more notable sections and memorials.  This day was just to be me and my map and a list of memorials throughout the cemetery. 

By the end of my time in Arlington, I had walked almost the entire place.  From the very front to the very back.  In the popular tourist areas, this Sunday still had many visitors and I walked with purpose amongst them.  I always smile when I overhear some of the conversations and realize how little some folks really know about their nation's history.  For example, the two fifty plus year-olds in the Spanish-American War memorial with the tribute to the crew of the destroyed Maine, saying to each other in surprise -- "an American navy ship was sunk in Havana, Cuba??".  Believe me as a history prof, I just kept walking as this was not the day to stop and give lectures about history :) 

I photographed all of the war memorials located within the cemetery grounds as well as some key graves.  My favorite part of the cemetery on this day, however, was in the back along the wall that separates the cemetery from Fort Myer.  I walked alone -- totally alone, through areas where a few Revolutionary War veterans are buried, the War of 1812 unknowns, to the entrance gate to the fort with the soldiers at attention, among the rows of civil war dead many of whom are unknown, to the haunting Confederate War memorial surrounded by the unique pointed headstones of the Confederate soldiers, and then to the remote section for those of World War I and the lonely, majestic Cross of Argonne. 

The cross is located about 20 feet from the old stone fence that borders the fort and after my photographs were complete for this area, I sauntered up to the stone wall and watched the soldiers and civilians on the base go about their everyday lives.  I wondered if they ever stopped to think about the people buried here just a few yards away and I wonder if anyone comes to this section anymore to visit a long, lost loved one.  I was saddened that I saw no one -- literally no one at all for about an hour in this section of the cemetery. 

I walked fascinated by the section of the cemetery where gravestones carry the names of those who were lost at sea.  These markers line steep hills in the cemetery but help remind one of those who never returned.  At the Tomb of the Unknowns, I witnessed and filmed a laying of the wreath service by local high schools.  The precision always amazes one.  (you can view this video on the bottom of this blog)  I photographed the USS Serpens memorial and then headed to the newest sections where the 9/11 Pentagon Group Burial Marker is located and the graves of our most recent losses in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Here I was saddened to see the young families with little children gathering around recent burial sites to place flowers.  One little boy sat and played with his toy car on what must have been his father's grave and as I contined walking with a heavy heart, I saw down one long row, all by herself, a young woman sitting with a book and reading next to a grave.  I hope that this section soon becomes more quiet with few, if any, new gravesites added.  

As I walked with a tired pace back towards the visitors center, I stopped at one last spot.  The cedar tree and small plaque that commemorates those Marines lost in Lebanon in 1983.  Cars went by me and other tourists passed this small spot without notice, but I remembered that horrible time when young men of my generation were so quickly lost. 

My feet were now aching and very sore but my spirits were full of all that I had been able to see.  I had set out to find all of the war memorials and key commemorations from oldest to most recent, and I had accomplished this task.  I had captured the images that would hopefully help my students and those from around the world always remember the people who are laid to rest here in this beautiful and tranquil place.  As I walked up to the visitors center, I saw Leslie in her car and knew it was time to catch my plane and head home.

I will post in just a day or two about what I found on my trip to Chicago recently!  Something very unusual :)

Washington and Arlington Cemetery

I recently had the good fortune to be able to again visit Washington, D.C. to attend a national conference, the Organization of American Historians.  While in the nation's capital, I always try to visit Arlington National Cemetery as it is one of my favorite places; its tranquil beauty and vivid reminders of the cost of war always touches my heart. 

The conference provided me some great contacts for my project as well as some helpful ideas on designing my website and database and so I am grateful for TCC's support and especially my dean Dr. Jackson for making this last minute trip possible.  I was lucky enough to visit during the last part of the cherry blossom season and the weather was gorgeous!  The visit was very very short but really useful.

I went on a great scavenger hunt around the national capitol mall to photograph the many memorials on the mall as well as some in out-of the-way places.   The tributes to the 1st and 2nd Army Divisions that are found near the White House are often overlooked but their stark beauty caught my eye, especially the red flowers laid out in a large "1". 

I walked from the White House around the entire mall -- the WWII, Vietnam, and Korean memorials and  then down behind the Lincoln Memorial to the Memorial Bridge to photo the beautiful and large sculptures that mark the entrance to the bridge, then to the FDR memorial, and the DC World War I memorial that is largely forgotten but so very beautiful, then John Paul Jones, and U.S. Grant in front of the Capitol building; I then hiked up to the Japanse-American Patriotism in WWII memorial and back down to the Navy Memorial!  This was a very very long walk in about 5 hours but my camera clicked away and I enjoyed finding the more forgotten memorials such as the Grand Army of the Republic, and the Soldiers and Sailors of the Civil War. 

I will make a separate post for Arlington National Cemetery.
[One last comment here -- I do wish I had been able to go with a good friend who lived and worked in this city for a number of years and who knows all the great places and how to get into them -- like Old Ebbits Grill!  Oh well.]

Texas my home state

Texans remember and commemorate as much or more than any other folks.  Across this great state, in communities both large and small, Texans erect memorials to remember those who have served in our nation's (and Texas') conflicts.  Almost every county courthouse has memorials on the lawns surrounding these usually beautiful structures, and most cities and towns have some memorial, even highways.  Texans have proudly served throughout our history and they build structures to insure that service is not forgotten.  I am paying special attention to my home state as the breadth and variety of memorials is quite enlightening.  I have provided a few pictures of some of these memorials I have chronicled so far.

The four heads on top of this memorial in Boerne represent the four military branches in the US. (But are a little strange as you approach)

Kaufman County has created a huge memorial park overflowing with marble slabs engraved with all the names of those who served in all wars from the county.

Burnet surprises with this elegant tribute.

San Antonio's Veteran's Plaza provides a tribute to the wars of the 20th century with haunting sculptures:

And then there are the more routine memorials found in many Texas (and other southern towns) the World War I statue of an American Doughboy by E. M. Viquesney and the tribute to the Confederate war dead with the Confederate soldier in white marble on a pedestal. (San Antonio's Confederate memorial is just one block from the Veteran's memorial park you see above, but in a much larger venue by itself and with cannons.

Here is the county courthouse grounds at Llano as an illustration:

Welcome

Hello and welcome to my travel blog.  For this blog I will be posting as I travel and photograph war memorials, cemeteries and commerations for my NEH sponsored Teaching Development Fellowship for which I will be creating a teaching website and database.  You can follow my travels and travails across the U.S and Europe and of course Texas and wherever my research leads me.  I will post pictures and descriptions of my experiences for those who want to follow my progress.

I have long had an interest in military history and especially the lives of the people who go to war.  How societies remember and commemorate their times of greatest crisis can provide a window into that society and its emotions.  War cuts across all people and nations and is part of the study of humanities and by better understanding its effects we can better understand ourselves.  Nations create monumental commemorations that show power and majesty and communities erect commemorations to remember their local loved ones.  Size, design and placement all factor into what the memorial is attempting to portray or the emotions it seeks to evoke.  Sometimes the commemorations provide a place to remember or for loved ones to gather, and all memorials serve to remind us of the ultimate sacrifices that so many have made.  So follow me as I spend my summer (and beyond), examining these rememberances, both large and small.