Happy Veterans Day!
I enjoy taking an early morning short walk to start my day.
On my walk on Veterans Day, I decided to take a detour from my normal route along the Fox River, and check out Wheeler Park.
In the park, there is a Veterans Memorial, one of several in Geneva. It features a wall, along with two 4.7 inch M1906 Guns, circa 1911-1932, along with two benches.
Here is the the wall, along with one of the guns.
"In Eternal Remembrance Of Those Who Served With Courage And Honor In Defense Of American Liberty"
Short History of the M1906
Manufacturing of these began in 1906, with the first units receiving the weapons in 1911. These were one of the few artillery pre World War 1 selected for wartime production. However, few of these guns ever made it to France, because of technical problems with large scale production, the short (19 month) U.S. participation in the war, and the limited pre war munitions industry.
Once the U.S. entered the war, the Army decided to adopt French and British artillery systems, with proposals made to rechamber the 4.7 inch gun to fire 120 mm ammunition.
This proposal never made it into full scale production, as the changes proved too difficult to implement.
With the war over in November of 1918, 149 guns and 320 carriages were produced between early 1917 and the Armistice Sixty-four of these weapons (48 from pre-war stocks) were shipped to France to equip three regiments, of which two (the 302nd and 328th Field Artillery) saw action with 48 guns total.
History of Veterans Day
The Great War (World War I) officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. Fighting had actually ceased seven months earlier when an armistice between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”
President Woodrow Wilson commemorated the first anniversary in November 1919, with celebrations continued annually, recognizing the veterans of that conflict.
Congress made this day to officially recognize the end of the war in a resolution passed June 4th, 1926.
May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as “Armistice Day.” Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor Veterans of World War I,
In 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the Veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word “Armistice” and inserting in its place the word “Veterans.” On June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American Veterans of all wars.
With gratitude and respect, thank you to all veterans, and those currently serving, for defending our republic, liberty, and constitution, today, and always.