Service for Nevada's Last-Known Pearl Harbor Survivor: Ed Hall

From the November 11, 2022, Las Vegas Review-Journal by Mark Credico.

Dozens of people gathered on Veterans Day at the Las Vegas  Masonic Memorial Temple to pay tribute to Ed Hall who died November 2 at age 99.

In 2017, Mr. Hall received his high school diploma.  He had not gotten it earlier because he enlisted in the Army at age 16.  He was 18 when Pearl Harbor was attacked..

He was cleaning  a frying pan in the mess hall at Hickam Field when the attack came.  After he was pulled to cover and regained his wits, Hall commandeered a pickup truck and drove around the base for hours with a medic to rescue as many wounded as he could find.  At one point, multiple bullets came through  the cab of the truck, missing them, but shattering the windshield.

Hall lost a lot of friends that, something that he never forgot.

Hall's ashes will be interred in the Punchbowl Memorial Cemetery on  Hawaii.

--GreGen

Mount Diablo Beacon Set to Shine Tonight in Honor of Veterans Day-- Part 1

From the November 10, 2022,  Press (California) by Melissa  van Ruiten.

If you look west  after sunset in Friday, November 11, you'll notice a familiar light shining atop Mt. Diablo.

In honor of Veterans Day,  nonprofit land  conservation organization, Save Mount Diablo, will be lighting the summit beacon.   

This follows a joint proclamation that was issued in February of this year stating that  the beacon will be lit on Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Pearl Harbor Day sunset to sunrise, beginning in 2022 and every year thereafter.

Signatories of the proclamation included members of local veterans groups, California State Parks, bational. state and local elected officials and Save Mount Diablo members.

Story continued in my other blogs today.

A Nice Touch.  --GreGen

In Honor of Veterans Day; USS Oklahoma Identified and Will Be Buried at Patchogue on Dec. 7:

Today is Veterans Day.  And there can be no way of honoring the day than the identification of a veteran's remains MIA all these years.

The 11th post on this blog on the 11th day.

From the November 10, 2021, Greater Long Island.com (New York)  "Navy sailor killed at Pearl Harbor to be buried at Patchogue on Dec. 7 after 80 years" by Ana  Borruto.

U.S. Navy Fireman  3rd Class Kenneth L. Jayne was identified  on April 16, 2016, by the defense  POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) after being missing all those years since Pearl Harbor.

There will be a burial event at  Cedar Grove Cemetery on December 4.

He was born in Patchogue on August 15, 1915 and entered the Navy at age 26, serving on the USS Oklahoma.

Jayne and 428 crewmembers died that day.

A Big Thank You to the Government for Identifying These Men.  --GreGen

101-Year-Old Navy Veteran Al Oesterle recalls the End of the USS Princeton (CVL-23)-- Part 1

From the November 10, 2020, Coloradoan "101-year-old Fort Collins veteran remembers escape from ill-fated World War II carrier" by Kevin Dugan.

This story originally appeared in my November 11 Running the Blockade blog in honor of Veterans Day.  There was so much about this event (which I had never heard of) that I figured to write the rest of the story here.

Al Oesterle left the U.S. Navy in 1965 after a long career in it.   And, he had a near run-in with death that his family didn't learn about until nearly 40 years after it happened.  It was at a reunion of the crew that had served on the USS Princeton (CVL-23), a light aircraft carrier that was lost during the Battle of Leyte Gulf.  His wife, Joan heard that her husband might have been the last man to leave the stricken carrier before it sank.

Mr. Oesterle grew up in Joliet, Illinois and joined the Navy in 1939 at age 20 and attended the University of Illinois Dental School.   He graduated in 1942 and was appointed to the U.S. Navy Dental Corps.  After further training, he was assigned to the USS Princeton in December 1943.

The Princeton was operating in the Pacific Theater.

On October 24, 1944, east of  the Philippine island of Luzon, a lone Japanese dive bomber emerged from the clouds and dropped a bomb on the Princeton,  penetrating the flight deck and exploding  in the hangar bay, where aircraft were being armed and fueled.

--GreGen

Honoring Our WW II Veterans on Veterans Day-- Part 2: 1st Lt. Walter Pettit, Ruth Snively and Howard Miller

On Veterans Day I wrote about these WW II veterans in other blogs.  Every veterans Day I write about something to do with our Armed Forces in all of my blogs.

If you want to read the entry in the other blogs, just go ton the right of this entry to where it says My Blogs List and click on the blog.  Then go to the November 11 entry.

CIVIL WAR II BLOG

1st Lt. Walter Pettit, 97, U.S. Army Air Corps and Ruth Snively, 95, a Rosie the Riveter.

COOTER'S HISTORY THING BLOG

Howard Miller, USMC  His remains recovered on Betio, Tarawa, and returned home.  See Nov. 11 and 13 entries.

--GreGen

Honoring Our WW II Vets on Veterans Day-- Part 1: A USS Oklahoma Unknown and Another One On the USS Princeton When It Was Hit by a Kamikaze

This past Wednesday was November 11th, the day where we always honor all of out veterans, those still here and those who are gone.

Every Veterans Day, I write about some aspect of the commemoration or about newly identified  remains or veterans still living, in all eight of my blogs.  It is that important to me.

Here are the WW II veterans I wrote about in my other blogs on Wednesday.  You can go to these sites by clicking on the My Blog List column to the right of this entry.  Then go to the November 11 entry:

SAW THE ELEPHANT: CIVIL WAR BLOG

Petty Officer 2nd Class James M. Flanagan, one of the newly identified USS Oklahoma Unknowns.

RUNNING THE BLOCKADE:  CIVIL WAR NAVY BLOG

Al Oesterle who was on the USS Princeton in the Pacific when it was hit by a kamikaze

--GreGen

World War II 'No Regrets Tour' by Sidney Walton, 101, Veterans Day

From the November 10, 2020, Pennsylvania Real-Time News "101-year-old World War II veteran embarks on Veterans Day motorcade tour" by Dan Gleiter.

On Tuesday, Harrisburg, Pa., provided a warm send-off for Sidney Walton where he received the Key to the City from the mayor.  Harrisburg police then escorted him in the first stage of his tour to Washington, D.C..

Mr. Walton is one of the last remaining World War II veterans and says he has always been sorry he did not get a chance to meet any pf the last surviving Civil War veterans before they too passed into history.  So, he launched his tour in 2018 with intentions to visit all fifty states and meet with all  fifty governors in his "No Regrets Tour."

He has already been to 35 states.

In 1941, he quit college in New York City at age 21 to join the U.S. Army and "fight Hitler."  That was nine months before Pearl Harbor.  During the war, he was with the  34th Infantry,  8th Division and fought in China, Burma, India Theater.

Out of 16 million WW II veterans, most recent estimates have  only 325,000 still alive with around 300 dying every day.  It is expected that all will be gone in the next 15 years.

Pennsylvania has around  18,000 still alive.

--GreGen

Honoring Our Veterans Today: Attend Your Local Ceremony

Of course, one of the best places you can go is to a local ceremony in your area, probably even your home town, where the local veterans organization will have a ceremony.  This is even more important as we continue losing so many World War II and Korean War veterans to age.

They almost all start at 11 a.m., in honor of the original reason for what became Veterans Day, something called Armistice Day which marked the end of World War I on the 11th Hour of the 11th Day of 11th Month.

This eventually became Veterans Day, honoring all veterans of all wars, and at the time in 1919, we still had many Civil War veterans, both Union and Confederate, as well as Indian Wars, Spanish-American War and Philippines.

I plan on going to our commemoration in Fox Lake, Illinois, to be held at the train station and put on by my American Legion Post 703 and the VFW.  Of course, we have just gotten around 4 inches of snow with more on the way with winter advisory until 2 p.m. and temps dropping significantly.

But, if our veterans stood this sort of weather for much longer than an hour, it's the least we can do for them.

--GreGen

"The War To End All Wars" Ends and Veterans Day Today

On this date, at 11 a.m., the guns along the Western Front ceased firing, marking the end of "The War To End All Wars."  Sadly, this was not the last war.

But, anyway, the bloodiest war in the annals of human history ended and everyone was happy.

Today, we still commemorate Armistice Day, though we call it Veterans Day.

In a short time, Liz and I will be going to the train station in Fox Lake, Illinois, for the observance of this special day.

If You See a Vet Today, Definitely Thank Them.

Five Great Places to Visit This Veterans Day 2017

From the Nov. 10, 2017, USA Today  "10 great places to honor military on Veterans Day" by Larry Bleiberg.

The other five can be seen in my Cooter's History Thing Blog for today.

6.  Alamo--  San Antonio, Texas

7.  Minute Man National Historic Park--  Concord, Massachusetts

8.  Normandy, France

9.  Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery--  San Diego, California

Support Your Local veterans.  --Cooter

With Thanks and Remembrance: Six WW II Veterans at Lindenhurst, Illinois Ceremony

From the November 23, 2016, Hi-Liter.

Six World War II veterans: Earl Kelly, Frank Kraft, Tom Atchinson, Marvin Ryan, Norbert Pischke and Don Martin, were recognized for their service at the Veterans Day ceremony held at the Lindenhurst, Illinois Veterans Memorial on Friday, November 11.

Always great to see a group of them still alive as we continue to lose the Greatest Generation.

GreGen

World War II Re-Enactors Preserving History-- Part 2: A Local Mecca

There are several World War II reenactment groups and locations in the Chicago region.  They include the WWII Historical reenactment Society and the Central Illinois WWII Reenactors.  Midway Village and Museum in Rockford and the Lockport Township Park District hold WWII reenactments.

World War II reenactors have a larger array of large "props" to draw upon than those of the revolutionary War or Civil War because of the sheer number of automatic weapons and war vehicles that are available.  It has the infantry combat aspect like the others nut also the mechanical aspect in what Russo calls the "Wow Factor" that so impresses first-time spectators.

A recent event featured battles between 400 German and American infantry as well as working ta and other rare war vehicles such as a German Horch (similar to a Humvee), authentic weapons such as a 50-caliber machine gun, and a vintage military aircraft flying "bombing runs" over the battklefield.  A pyrotechnics team provided live gunfire and explosions.  This event drew 10,000 spectators.

--GreGennks

World War II Re-enactors Preserving History-- Part 1

From the Nov. 6, 2015, Chicago Tribune "Preserving History."

While it may seem like a modern-day hobby, reenacting is a tradition that dates back to the Roman Empire.  Today, the Civil War reenactments are the most popular here in America, especially during the sesquicentennial of the Civil War.

However, World War II reenactments are becoming more popular here in the Midwest.  Kent berg of the Living History Reenactment Association estimates that 5,000 people participate in World War II reenactments in the U.S. and even more around the world.

I have been seeing ads for more and more World War II reenactments in the Midwest.

--GreGen

In Honor of Veterans: Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial-- Part 2

In a semicircular garden on the east side of the memorial is the Walls of the Missing inscribed with 1,557 names.  Rosettes mark the names of those since recovered and identified.  The memorial is a semicircular colonnade with a loggia at each end containing large maps and narratives of the D-Day landing and operations.  At the center is the bronze statue "Spirit of American Youth Rising from the Waves."

Facing west at the memorial is the reflecting pool in the foreground, beyond is the burial area with a circular chapel and at the far end is a statue representing the U.S. and France.

Nearby on Omaha Beach is the striking stainless steel sculpture called Les Braves that honors all the men who landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day to liberate France.

Open to public display except Dec. 25 and Jan. 1.  Hours vary by season, but always from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m..

--GreGen

In Honor of Our Veterans: Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in France-- Part 1

Former U.S. General Colin Powell said, "We have gone forth from our shores repeatedly over the last hundred years...and put wonderful men and women at risk, many of whom have lost their lives, and we have asked for nothing except enough ground to bury them in."

The Normandy American Cemetery and memorial in France is the embodiment of this quote.  It is located on the site of the American St. Laurent Cemetery, established by the U.S. First Ar,y on June 8, 1944, the first American cemetery on European soil in World War II.

According to the American Battle Monuments Commission, a federal agency and guardian of America's overseas commemorative cemeteries and memorials, the cemetery site is 172.5 acres and contains the graves of 9,387 American dead, most of whom lost their lives on the D-Day landings and subsequent operations.

--GreGen

Veterans Day in College Station, Texas

There was an article about the new Civil War Memorial to be dedicated April 9, 2015, the 150th anniversary of Appomattox.

It will be joining other memorials along the half mile Lynn Stuart Trail.  Two of them honor World War II veterans.

One is the Day of Infamy, dedicated Dec. 7. 2011, the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, and honors those who served and died in the Pacific Theater of World War II.  The other is Letters From Home and honors those who served in the European Theater.

Thanks, Veterans.  --GreGen

A Big Thank You to Our World War II Veterans

Today, I pause to thank those members of the Greatest Generation who served to make the world safe for all.  Sadly, this generation is fast leaving us, but to those who remain, we salute you and those who have passed on, the same.