Commemorating the First World War Centennial in Kansas
Although the 369th Regiment Armory still stands at 142d St. and Fifth Ave. in New York, the regiment itself was disbanded in 1946 and its heritage passed to other units, now the 369th Sustainment Brigade, NY National Guard. The original 369th Infantry, widely known as “The Harlem Hell Fighters”, served with the French in WW1, and has been awarded the Congressional Gold Medal (CGM).
Take the “Insider Tour” by clicking here. Bear in mind that the 58 foot wide bronze sculpture panels won’t be installed until 2024.
Searchers say that they have located the wreck of the R-Class submarine R-8, later designated SS-85, which was intentionally sunk in 1936 during naval exercises off of the Delmarva Peninsula. In all, twenty-seven R-Class boats were built under non-cancellable contracts issued in April, 1917. Thirteen R-Class boats were launched prior to the Armistice but none were commissioned in time to see war service. The R-8 itself was commissioned on July 21st, 1919. You can read more about this by clicking here.
The following virtual programs are upcoming from the National WW1 Museum and Memorial:
Tues. April 6th 7:00 CDT Pershing Lecture Series: The Armenian Massacres
Tues. April 13th 7:00 CDT Modernity and Culture Change
Sun. April 18th 2:00 PM CDT Lawrence of Arabia: A Life and a Legacy Part 1
The ‘battle’ over the site of Sgt. Alvin York’s heroic deeds on October 8th, 1918 continues. Recently the research of ret. Col. Douglas Mastriano, Ph. D, has been called into question, with at least one critic accusing him of academic fraud. Mastriano, the driving force behind The Sgt. York Discovery Project, is an historian who frequently appears on CSPAN and has lectured at the U.S. World War One Museum in Kansas City as recently as 2018. If you don’t know much about Sgt. York you can read his story by clicking here, and if you’re not familiar with the saga of the searches for the site you can read more about that by clicking here. To read more about the latest news, including the accusation of academic fraud, you can click here.
Preparations have begun for the observance of this historic event on November 11th, 2021. Read more about this by clicking here.
Since 1954 the U.S. has observed every November 11th as Veteran’s Day, while in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand the day remains known as Remembrance Day. Why did Americans make this change? Read Dr. Neiberg’s article by clicking here.
Last Monday night politically-themed graffiti was painted on a wall by the entrance to the National WW1 Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri. You can read a local news story by clicking here.
This isn’t the first time the museum walls have been defaced. You can read about the 2019 incident by clicking here.
The Bleckley Airport Memorial Foundation has acquired an authentic Airco DH-4 aircraft and plans to restore it for inclusion in the collections they will have at their proposed memorial to 2nd Lieut. Erwin Bleckley, a Wichita native who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his deeds on October 6th, 1918. Bleckley has been the subject of several previous posts here. You can read two of them by clicking here or here. You can also read more about the Lost Battalion here.
At the north end of ANZAC Cove on the Gallipoli peninsula is a large free-standing tablet which bears this text:
‘Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives! You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours. You, the mothers, who sent their sons from far away countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well.’
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