WOODBURY COUNTY. IOWA
Lawton Dedicates Memorial to Heroes of War
Service Board in Honor of Residents with Armed Forces
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U. S. A.
LAWTON --Men & Women in Armed Service (Army, Navy, Marines)
Looking up at the service board bearing names of the 37 men and one woman who have left Lawton to join the armed forces are, left to right, Private Melvin Quintart, stationed with the Army at St. Petersburg, Fla.; Harry Haynes, member of the dedication committee; Rev. W. E. Smith, master of ceremonies for the unveiling program; H. I. Plumer, chairman of the dedication committee; O. P. Plumer, Mayor of Lawton, and James Hays, stationed at the Great Lakes naval training station. Photo from The Sioux City Journal-Tribune, August 15, 1942 |
Lawton, population 263, Friday night honored 37 men and one woman who have left the town and its surrounding farms for service in the nation’s armed forces.
At a dedication of a service board on the main street, bearing the names, citizens echoed the declaration of J. I. Plumer, chairman of the program committee, that the light which illuminates it is “not going to be put out until the war’s over.”
Nearly 100 persons, many of whom saw names of loved ones on the board, attended the dedication ceremonies. An address by Rev. W. E. Smith, pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Lawton; a recitation, a vocal solo and community singing were included on the program.
Two Lawton sons, Private Melvin Quintard, stationed with the Army at St. Petersburg, Fla., and James Hays, stationed at the Great Lakes naval training station, were home for the dedication and cut the ropes of the monument’s veil.
Oddly enough, the first to see action was the only woman listed on the board, Elsie L. Christensen. A Navy nurse, she was at her post when the Japs rained bombs on Pearl Harbor.
As yet Lawton has suffered no war casualties.
Rev. Mr. Smith addressed the audience on The American Way and offered a vocal solo, Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep. Rex Harshfield, 12-year-old boy scout, recited Lincoln’s Gettysburg address.
Names which appear on the board are:
| Armin Johnson | Jack Hays |
| Martin Donnell | Clifford Quintard |
| Cecil Abbot | Glen Lighthall |
| Ernest Christensen | Jay Glover |
| Wade Lucy, jr. | John Bunning |
| Ernest Glover | Elmer Pedersen |
| Ferd Plumer | Alvern Wingert |
| Melvin Qintard | George Inlay |
| George Irwin | William Crowl |
| Emory McNaughton | James Hays |
| Kermit Johnson | Leonard Coon |
| Albert Peterson | Bill Hartz |
| Leroy Carlson | Roy Inlay |
| Everett Krause | Vernon McNaughton |
| Leroy Hoelker | Lyall Anderson |
| Sammy Bach | Harry Baack |
| Paul Bartels | Harry Christensen |
| Thomas Grigg | Ray R. Sheffers |
| Clifford Pilcher | Elsie L. Christensen |
Source: The Sioux City Journal-Tribune, August 15, 1942
