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Veterans Memorial Park
P.O. Box 188
Lovell, WY 82431
The spectacular armed forces mural in downtown
Lovell, painted by artist Harry Engstrom, is designed to represent the service
and sacrifice of the men and women of Big Horn County who served in various
branches of the U.S. military in wars ranging from World War I to Operation
Desert Storm.
The mural is part of an overall project to
construct a veterans memorial center and museum honoring all veterans. This is
part one of a series explaining the different images making up the mural.
For more information on the project, contact
Dick Doerr at 548-6442, Shirley Doerr at 548-7356, Don Dover at 548-7053, Wes
Meeker at 548-7251 or Glade Williams at 548-2464
The central figure in the Lovell veterans
mural is the five soldiers at the center of the large canvass representing the
five major wars of the 20th century:
Part One: World
War I
Researched by Wes Meeker
The soldier on the left of the
mural represents World War I, which began in 1914.
The United States entered the war on April 6, 1917, by declaring war on
Germany. In all, 4,355,000 men and women were mobilized as the American
Expeditionary Force. The Wyoming National Guard, with soldiers from this area,
served in France with the 148th Field Artillery. Total war deaths from combat
and disease were 54,036, with 1,472 of the deaths from gas attacks. Non-fatal
gas attacks inflicted injuries to 71,345 American soldiers. World War I ended
in 1918, the 11th month, 11th day and the 11th hour.
Two area soldiers killed were honored by the American Legion and the Veterans of
Foreign Wars. To this day, Robert Boyd Stewart American Legion Post 11 and
Everett W. Maxwell VFW Post 3161 carry on the memory of the two local soldiers
lost in World War I.
Part
Two – World War II
The second soldier
from the left in the mural represents World War II.
World War II began in 1939 when Hitler’s Nazi Germany attacked Poland. The
United States entered the war on December 7, 1941, with the Japanese attack on
the U.S. naval fleet at Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands.
In all, more than 16
million men and women were mobilized for a war in Europe and the Pacific.
Battle deaths totaled 291,567, with 670,846 wounded. Of the 17,000 nurses that
came to Europe, 1,700 were killed in combat. World War II was the most
devastating war in human history, claiming the lives of some 45 million people
overall.
Wyoming National
Guard soldiers of the 115th Mechanized Cavalry served in many theaters of the
war. World War II ended with Germany’s surrender May 7, 1945, and Japan’s
surrender August 14, 1945. The mural soldier for World War II, the second
figure from the left, also represents the artist’s father, Harry Engstrom Sr.,
who served in the Pacific Theatre of the war.
Part
Three - The Korean War
Researched by Wes Meeker
The soldier on in the middle of
the mural represents the Korean War.
The Korean War broke out five years after World War II ended. An agreement was
reached where the USSR would occupy North Korea and the USA would occupy South
Korea, using the 38th Parallel as a dividing line until free elections could be
held.
North Korea refused to have an election. South Korea did, and began to
prosper. On June 25, 1950, the highly trained army of North Korea attacked the
small army of South Korea. Caught by the surprise attack, the USA began to
bring in material and forces to support the South Koreans.
It became the first
war for the United Nations, with 20 member nations helping South Korea. A
Forgotten Victory, not a Forgotten War, South Korea remains free to this day.
It was the first limited war and the first war to stop communism.
The USA suffered
33,651 killed, 8,000 MIAs and 103,284 wounded.
Three units of the
Wyoming National Guard were called to active duty: the 141st Tank Battalion to
Ft. Knox, Ky., the 187th Fighter Squadron (flying P-51s) and the 300th Armored
Field Artillery Battalion to Korea. Many members of the 300th from north Big
Horn County fought in Korea.
The Korean War ended
July 27, 1953. The Korean War soldier on the mural, third from the left,
represents a friend of artist Harry Engstrom who was killed in Korea.
Part
Four - The Vietnam War
Researched by Wes
Meeker
The soldier second from the right
in mural represents the Vietnam War.
The Vietnam War, for the United States, began in 1961 when army advisors were
sent to South Vietnam to help train soldiers in their fight against Communist
North Vietnam. The war soon escalated, reaching peak troop strength of 543,482
in 1968.
Of the 7,484 nurses who served in Vietnam, eight died, with one killed in
action. Troop casualties included 303,704 wounded and 58,202 killed. More than
60 percent of the men killed were 21 years old or younger.
There were also 2,338 soldiers missing in action and 766 prisoners of war, with
114 POWs dying in captivity.
Vietnam became an unpopular war in the states, with demonstrations and ill
treatment of returning soldiers. The war ended in 1975. Surveys now report
that 87 percent of the public now hold Vietnam veterans in high esteem, and 75
percent of those polled agree the war was a failure of political will, not of
arms.
Likewise, surveys also reveal that 82 percent of veterans who saw heavy combat
strongly believe the war was lost because of a lack of political will, and 90
percent of those who saw actual combat are proud to have served their country.
Most say they would serve again if called.
The “Wall” in Washington, D.C. honors those who gave their lives in Vietnam and
those who served. A memorial in Cody honors those from Wyoming who died in the
war.
Part
Five - The Persian Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm)
Researched by Wes Meeker
The soldier on the right of the
mural represents the Persian Gulf War.
The Persian Gulf War
(Operation Desert Storm) began in August of 1990 when Iraq, led by Saddam
Hussein, invaded Kuwait. The United Nations passed resolutions demanding that
Iraq withdraw from Kuwait by January 15, 1991. Iraq didn’t withdraw, and by that
time allied ground, air and naval forces – chiefly the United States (with
532,000 forces), Saudi Arabia, Great Britain, Egypt, Syria and France – were
arrayed against Iraq.
Before the battle, General Norman Schwarzkopf, in addressing his forces, said,
“I have seen in your eyes a fire of determination to get this war done quickly.
My confidence in you is total. Our cause is just. Now you must be the thunder
and lightning of Desert Storm!”
The war lasted from January 16 to February 28, 1991. It was estimated that more
than 100,000 Iraqi soldiers died, 300,000 were wounded, 150,000 deserted and
60,000 were taken prisoner. The United States suffered 148 killed in action, 458
wounded and 121 killed in non-hostile action. There were 11 female combat
deaths.
Equipment losses for the U.S. included four tanks, one artillery piece, nine
armored personnel carriers, 17 helicopters and 44 aircraft. The U.S. Air Force’s
fighter-bomber and attack aircraft numbered 693 at the height of the war. They
flew 38,000 sorties in 43 days.
Part
Six: The 300th Armored Field Artillery
Researched by Wes Meeker
The image on the far
left of the veterans memorial mural is an M-7, a 105mm howitzer mounted on a
medium tank chassis, weighing 30 tons. It was used by the 300th Armored Field
Artillery Battalion of the Wyoming National Guard, which was composed of many
men from the Big Horn Basin.
The 300th Armored Field Artillery Battalion entered active duty on August 19,
1950, to fight in the Korean War. The battalion was composed of Headquarters
Battery, Sheridan; A Battery, Thermopolis; B Battery, Cody; C Battery, Worland;
and Service Battery, Lovell.
It became the most decorated Wyoming National Guard unit of any war, receiving
the First Presidential Unit Citation for the Battle of Soyang, the Second
Presidential Unit Citation for the Battle of Kumsong, the First Republic of
Korea Presidential Unit Citation for the Battle of Soyang, the Second Republic
of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for the Battle of Kumsong and a Meritorious
Unit Commendation – Korea 1952-1953.
Eleven soldiers died in battle, and 173 suffered wounds. A cease-fire began on
July 27, 1953.
The battalion’s 18 howitzers, mounted on a tank chassis for close support of the
infantry, fired 514,036 105mm cannon rounds in 805 days of combat.
The National Guard Heritage Series painting “Cowboy Artillery at Soyang” hangs
in the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.
Part
Seven: The Boeing P-12 Biplane
Researched by Wes
Meeker
The airplane just
below the star field on the giant mural flag is a Boeing P-12. This
American pursuit aircraft was operated by the United States Army Air Corps.
Boeing Aircraft Company supplied the USAAC with 366 P-12's between 1929 and
1932. The United States Navy also operated this aircraft under the name of
F4B.I.
Part
Eight: The Doolittle Raid
Researched by Wes Meeker
"Army Air Corps crews, man your planes" were the words spoken from the U.S.
Navy aircraft carrier U.S.S. Hornet on April 18, 1942, 620 nautical miles off
the coast of Japan.
This takeoff of a B-25 Mitchell, displayed on the mural, launched the first
major air strike against Japan in World War II. The Navy task force, consisting
of 16 ships and 10,000 men, completed its phase of the first "Joint Army/Navy
Action"&an action which signaled the beginning of the end of Japanese dreams of
world conquest.
Never before had an aircraft the size of a B-25 attempted taking off from a
carrier. After much stripping down, reducing fuel, ingenious changes and
intensive training, Colonel Jimmy Doolittle's squadron of 16 B-25s took off from
the Hornet on its heroic one-way "Doolittle Raid" against Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka
and Kobe.
This electrifying raid was a much needed boost to Allied morale at that most
dismal time in America's history in the months following Pearl Harbor.
Part
Nine: The USS Swordfish
Researched by Wes
Meeker
The United States Navy Submarine Service, during World War II in the Pacific,
sank 1,314 Japanese ships at the cost of 52 U.S. submarines and 3,500 men who
never returned. The submarine in the mural is one of those that never came back:
the USS Swordfish.
The Swordfish was launched in 1939 and was in Manila when Pearl Harbor was
attacked. It brought Philippine President Manuel Quezon, his family and aides to
the United States when the Japanese invaded their country.
The Swordfish made 13 patrols from December 1941 to February 1945. It accounted
for 13 ships sunk, nine probable and eight damaged. Five different officers
commanded the SS193 during this period, receiving three Navy Crosses and three
Silver Stars. The sub received three Navy Unit Citations and eight Battle Stars.
TM2 Warren "Tay" Dillon, home on leave, told about the Swordfish slipping into
Tokyo Harbor and the commander letting each man look at Tokyo through the
periscope. This was most likely on either the ninth or 10th patrol. On February
15, 1945, after repeated attempts to contact her by radio, the Swordfish was
presumed lost. It was her 13th patrol.
Part
Ten: The C-47 Skytrain
Researched by Wes
Meeker
The Douglas C-47 Skytrain was an airline turned workhorse. It was the
military development of the civilian DC-3, which first appeared in the early
1930s.
It was fitted with more powerful engines, structural strengthening around the
large cargo door, a sturdier floor and a strengthened landing gear for military
duty. Capable of flying on one engine if needed, the C-47 flew the "Hump" in
India delivering supplies to the army in Burma that was desperately fighting the
Japanese.
On the night of June 5, 1944, 850 C-47s dropped 15,000 paratroopers of the 82nd
and 101st Airborne Divisions behind German lines as part of the Normandy
Invasion.
General Eisenhower declared the C-47 one of the few pieces of equipment "vital
to our success in Africa and Europe." It was used in every theater of World War
II by Australia, Canada, Great Britain, India, Japan, the USA and Russia. The
C-47 and the DC-3 have remained in service for many years after World War II.
All told, 10,349 C-47 aircraft were build during World War II.
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Veterans
