Hill of Sacrifice

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific

Momma and I are now well rested enough to write about our whirlwind trip to Honolulu.

I shall start with a little background. Nineteen years ago Momma's aunt flew her extended family to Honolulu to be with her when she interred the ashes of her late husband at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. He was a World War II veteran and a survivor of the Battle of Iwo Jima, Feb. 19 - March 26, 1945).

Momma does not know too much about his wartime experiences as a Marine simply because he Did Not like to talk about it. She does know he was running up the beach at Iwo Jima when there was a blast or explosion which knocked him to the ground. When he looked up, his two best friends (who had been on each side of him) were dead. He was later shot through the wrist and received a Purple Heart. 

That service qualified him for burial at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (informally known as Punchbowl Cemetery).

Momma's aunt enjoyed having her entire family with her so much she always said she wanted us to do the same when she died and made provisions for such a trip in her estate. So this trip was planned since her death in October. 

Few national cemeteries can compete with the dramatic natural setting of the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. The "Punchbowl" was formed about 75,000 to 100,000 years ago during the Honolulu period of secondary volcanic activity. A crater resulted from the ejection of hot lava through cracks in the old coral reefs which, at the time, extended to the foot of the Koolau Mountain Range.

Although there are various translations of the Punchbowl's Hawaiian name, "Puowaina," the most common is "Hill of Sacrifice." This translation closely relates to the history of the crater. The first known use was as an altar where Hawaiians offered human sacrifices to pagan gods and the killed violators of the many taboos. (During the late 1890s, a committee recommended that the Punchbowl become the site for a new cemetery to accommodate the growing population of Honolulu. The idea was rejected for fear of polluting the water supply and the emotional aversion to creating a city of the dead above a city of the living.)

The Punchbowl Cemetery is a national cemetery located at Punchbowl Crater in Honolulu, Hawai'i. It serves as a memorial to honor those men and women who served in the United States Armed Forces, and those who have given their lives in doing so.

The view of Honolulu from the rim of the Punchbowl crater.

It is administered by the National Cemetery Administration of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Millions of visitors visit the cemetery each year, and it is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Hawai'i.

In February 1948, Congress approved funding and construction began on the national cemetery. Prior to the opening of the cemetery for the recently deceased, the remains of soldiers from locations around the Pacific Theater—including Guam, Wake Island, and Japanese POW camps—were transported to Hawai'i for final interment. The first interment was made Jan. 4, 1949 - 10 years before Hawai'i became a state. The cemetery opened to the public on July 19, 1949, with services for five war dead: an unknown serviceman, two Marines, an Army lieutenant, and one noted civilian war correspondent, Ernie Pyle.

Since the cemetery was dedicated on Sept. 2, 1949, approximately 53,000 World War I, World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War veterans and their dependents have been interred. The cemetery now almost exclusively accepts cremated remains (cremains) for above-ground placement in columbaria.

The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific contains a "Memorial Walk" that is lined with a variety of memorial markers from various organizations and governments that honor America's veterans. As of 2012, there were 60 memorial boulders (bearing bronze plaques) along the pathway. Additional memorials can be found throughout the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific—most commemorating soldiers of 20th Century wars, including those killed at Pearl Harbor.

Among the many memorials is the quote from Abraham Lincoln's letter to Mrs. Lydia Bixby: 
 

The solemn pride that must be yours, to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of Freedom.

That costly sacrifice can take place with lives lost - or the emotional toll it later takes upon our veterans and their families.

I'm a Toys Я Us kid!

Toys"R"Us

It's official, I am the luckiest Vinyl American ever.

Momma got a seasonal job at Toys Я Us!

Toys Я Us is a dedicated toy and juvenile-products retailer founded in 1948 and headquartered in Wayne, N.J. The company now operates more than 877 Toys Я Us and Babies Я Us stores in the United States, more than 685 international stores, and over 170 licensed stores in 35 countries and jurisdictions.

Charles Lazarus started Children's Supermart (which would evolve into Toys Я Us) in Washington, D.C. , in 1948 during the post-World War II baby boom era as a baby-furniture retailer. Lazarus began receiving requests from customers for baby toys. After adding baby toys, he got requests for toys for older children.

The focus of the store changed in 1957, and Toys Я Us was born in Rockville, Maryland. The company's mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe (formerly known as Dr. G. Raffe) made his debut during 1957 in print advertisements for Children's Bargain Town. He was known for saying "Toys"R"Us," a quote that later became the company's name. Dr. G. Raffe was renamed Geoffrey in 1969 when Children's Bargain Town became Toys Я Us, and became the official Toys Я Us "spokesanimal."

The original Toys Я Us store design in 1969-1989 consisted of vertical rainbow stripes and a brown roof with a front entrance and side exit. Some brown-roof locations still exist, although some have been painted different colors or renovated.

Incidentally, Toys Я Us acquired toy retailer FAO Schwarz in May 2009.

FAO Schwarz, founded in 1862 during the Civil War and the oldest toy store in the United States, is known for its unique high-end toys, life-sized stuffed animals, dolls, and games. The FAO Schwarz flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York City is a popular tourist destination, and has gained iconic status for its floor piano, cameos in major motion pictures, and real-life toy soldiers.

A room with a view

I'm on the Queen Mary!

Queens of the Sea

Momma and I are so excited we are both having an incredibly hard time waiting for Friday, Oct. 18.

On Friday we will be flying to Long Beach, Calif., where we will celebrate the marriage of one of Momma's oldest friends. (She has known him 34 years!)

Not only will we witness their marriage, but we'll be staying overnight on the historic Queen Mary! 

Named after Queen Mary, consort of King George V, RMS Queen Mary was the flagship of the Cunard Line (formerly known as Cunard-White Star) that sailed primarily in the North Atlantic Ocean from May 1936 until October 1967.
 
She was converted into a troopship after the outbreak of World War II and ferried Allied soldiers for the duration of the war. After the war, RMS Queen Mary was refitted for passenger service.

After several years of decreased profits due to commercial air travel, RMS Queen Mary was officially retired from service. She left Southampton, England for the last time on Oct. 31, 1967 and sailed to the port of Long Beach, Calif., where she is permanently moored.

Much of the machinery including two of the four steam turbines, three of the four propellers, and all of the boilers were removed, and the ship now serves as a tourist attraction featuring restaurants, a museum, and hotel.

The Queen Mary is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation has accepted the Queen Mary to be part of the Historic Hotels of America.

Hello dolly

I'm feeling sentimental today and want to reintroduce you to my very special Older Sister. Her name is Belinda and she is an Arranbee composition baby doll. I first wrote about her in June.

Although Belinda is American, her story begins in Nazi Germany on Kristallnacht.

The pretext for Kristallnacht was the assassination of German diplomat Ernst vom Rath on Nov. 9, 1938 by Herschel Grynszpan, a German-born Polish Jew in Paris, France.

Kristallnacht, also referred to as the Night of Broken Glass, was a series of attacks against Jews on Nov. 9–10, 1938 carried out by stormtroopers and civilians throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria. The attacks left the streets covered with broken glass from the windows of Jewish-owned stores, buildings, and synagogues.

Kristallnacht is viewed by historians as part of Nazi Germany's broader racial policy, and the beginning of the Final Solution and The Holocaust. 

A Jewish friend of Momma's grandfather had family in Germany that suffered after Kristallnacht, so he asked Momma's grandfather if he would provide a job if they came to the United States.

At that time, the United States was only permitting Jewish refugees if they had a sponsor who would provide a job. 

Momma's grandfather agreed to sponsor his friend's family and called in a political favor from Ohio's U.S. Senator Robert Taft, but (without thinking) asked if the refugees would bring a doll for his daughter.

Momma's aunt, who was about 10 at the time, wasn't interested in baby dolls but had a formidable collection of international dolls.

But the Jewish refugees were fleeing for their lives and German authorities confiscated most of their belongings as they left the country, so when they arrived in New York City they bought Momma's aunt an Arranbee composition baby doll.

A doll's a doll, right?

The Arranbee (R&B) Doll Company was located in New York and made bisque, composition, rubber, hard plastic and vinyl dolls. Composition was made out of sawdust, glue, and other materials such as cornstarch, resin and wood flour.

Sadly, Momma's aunt was not too impressed with her composition baby doll and Belinda spent about 30 years languishing in an antique trunk in a damp basement where Momma eventually found her.

Belinda's composition is cracking and her voice box stopped working years ago, but she's still special in our eyes.

Hoorah for the bra

While I definitely prefer a corset, there is much to be said for the humble bra.

The brassiere has long been thought to be a relatively modern invention, but in 2008 archaeologists working at a castle in Austria discovered evidence of modern-style bras made from linen.

The pictured bra, found in the Lengberg Castle, looks similar to the modern longline brassiere with the cups made from two pieces of linen sewn with fabric extending down to the bottom of the torso with a row of six eyelets for fastening with a lace or string.

The brassiere also has two shoulder straps and is decorated with lace between the cleavage. Using radiocarbon dating, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, estimates the brassiere was from sometime between end of the 14th to the second half of the 15th century.

From the 16th century onwards, the undergarments of wealthier women in the Western world were dominated by the corset. In the latter part of the 19th century, clothing designers began experimenting with various alternatives to the corset.

In 1910 at age 19, Mary Phelps Jacob invented the first modern brassiere to receive a patent and gain wide acceptance.

With metal shortages, World War II encouraged the end of the corset. By the time the war ended, most fashion-conscious women in Europe and North America were wearing brassieres. From there the brassiere was adopted by women in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

But not me.

What a doll

I want to introduce you to my very special Older Sister. Her name is Belinda and she is an Arranbee composition baby doll.

Composition dolls like her are easily found, but what makes Belinda special is her story.

Although Belinda is American, her story begins in Nazi Germany on Kristallnacht.

Kristallnacht, also referred to as the Night of Broken Glass, was a series of attacks against Jews on Nov. 9–10, 1938 carried out by stormtroopers and civilians throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria. The attacks left the streets covered with broken glass from the windows of Jewish-owned stores, buildings, and synagogues.

A Jewish friend of Momma's grandfather had family in Germany that suffered after Kristallnacht, so he asked Momma's grandfather if he would provide a job if they came to the United States.

At that time, the United States was only permitting Jewish refugees if they had a sponsor who would provide a job. 

(You doubt me? The German ocean liner St. Louis, carrying 937 Jewish refugees seeking political asylum from Nazi persecution, was denied permission to land in the United States on June 4, 1939. Cuba and Canada also refused the refugees. Various European countries eventually accepted the refugees, but approximately 254 passengers were to later die at the hands of the Nazis.)

Momma's grandfather agreed to sponsor his friend's family and called in a political favor from Ohio's U.S. Senator Robert Taft, but (without thinking) asked if the refugees would bring a doll for his daughter.

Momma's aunt, who was about 10 at the time, wasn't interested in baby dolls but had a formidable collection of international dolls.

But the Jewish refugees were fleeing for their lives and German authorities confiscated most of their belongings as they left the country, so when they arrived in New York City they bought Momma's aunt an Arranbee composition baby doll.

A doll's a doll, right?

The Arranbee (R&B) Doll Company was located in New York and made bisque, composition, rubber, hard plastic and vinyl dolls. Composition was made out of sawdust, glue, and other materials such as cornstarch, resin and wood flour.

Sadly, Momma's aunt was not too impressed with her composition baby doll and Belinda spent about 30 years languishing in an antique trunk in a damp basement where Momma eventually found her.

Belinda's composition is cracking and her voice box stopped working years ago, but she's still special in our eyes.

Diamonds are a queen's best friend

The Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II is the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. She is currently queen regnant of 16 sovereign states, 12 of which were British colonies or Dominions at the start of her reign.

Elizabeth was born April 21, 1926 in London, and educated privately at home. Her father acceded to the throne as George VI in 1936 on the abdication of his brother Edward VIII. She began to undertake public duties during the World War II, in which she served in the Auxiliary Territorial Service.

On Wednesday, Feb. 6, 1952, Princess Elizabeth received the news of her father's death and her own accession to the throne, while staying at the Treetops Hotel in Kenya. (Momma's grandmother once stayed in the same room!)

The Coronation took place in Westminster Abbey on June 2, 1953, conducted by Dr. Geoffrey Fisher, Archbishop of Canterbury.

Crowds of people viewed the procession all along the route, despite heavy rain. The ceremony was also broadcast on radio around the world and, at the Queen's request, on television for the first time. 

Grandmomma remembers going to a friend's house to watch the coronation since her family didn't have a television set!

Queen Victoria in 1897 is the only other monarch in the history of the United Kingdom to have celebrated a Diamond Jubilee.

I'm a little devil

A.E. Huls about 1883 in Millville, Ohio.

I have yet another job description. I am now a printer's devil!

A printer's devil was an apprentice in a printing establishment who performed a number of menial tasks, such as mixing tubs of ink and fetching type.

You need proof?

Here's an old photo of Momma's great-grandfather, A.E. Huls, in the doorway of his first printshop in Millville (later Rockbridge), Ohio where he published the Millville Tomahawk. He eventually moved to Logan, Ohio where he published the Logan Republican and ran the Huls Printing Co.

According to the Nov. 10, 1911 edition of the Democrat Sentinel:

After 10 years of having a Democrat for mayor, a Republican was elected - Mr. Huls, Editor of The Logan Republican. It was said that the Logan federation of labor unions toward the end lined up for Huls, because he carried a card as a union printer, and some of the liberal element of the town who were opposed to the other candidate for other reasons, threatened the liberals that if the other candidate were reelected they would vote dry at the coming county election.

The Huls Building (51 E. Main, Logan, OH 43138) was constructed in 1923. It was the first fire-proof building in Logan. Publisher of the Logan Republican newspaper since 1908, Huls’ building also housed his commercial printing business.

Huls planned to operated his printing business as Huls and Sons with the help of his sons, Charlie and Fred. Sadly, Charlie died Jan. 31, 1925 from strychnine poison contained in medicine obtained at the Ohio State University dispensary while completing his final semester in journalism.

Tragedy continued to haunt Momma's family. In the Aug. 1, 1934 Circleville Herald:

FORMER PUBLISHER DIES OF INJURIES
A. E. Huls, Logan, Succumbs In Hospital While Son Is Hunted Through West 

Alpheus E. Huls, 68, former publisher of the Logan Republican and a personal friend of J. W. Johnson, N. Court St., died in Grant hospital injuries he received a week ago in an automobile wreck near Athens.

Mrs. Huls, who was injured at the same time, is reported in serious condition. She has a fractured skull and a broken shoulder.

Frantic efforts are being made to find their son, Fred, who, with his wife and daughter, is touring the west. He does not know of his parents tragedy. He is the present publisher of the newspaper.

Mr. Huls succumbed of a blood clot in the heart artery. He served as inspector of the Division of Workshops and Factories under the late Governor Frank B. Willis and was a former post master and mayor of Logan for two terms.

Mrs. Huls also died from her injuries. Their son Fred continued to publish the paper until the 1940s, closing when he joined the Navy in World War II, and ran the printing business a number of years after that with the help of his son Fritz.

Although no longer in Ohio, Momma is the fourth generation of printers in the Huls family. So I get to be her devil at the new Huls Printing Co.

Hey, that's how Mark Twain got his start!

Courage has no color

What do I plan to do this weekend? Go see the long overdue new moving picture, Red Tails, of course.

The Tuskegee Airmen is the popular name of a group of African American pilots who fought in World War II. (The nickname "Red Tails" was coined when the pilots painted the tails of their P-47s red.)

The story follows the Tuskegee Airmen, the first African-American pilots to fly in a combat squadron during World War II. As the war in Europe continues to take its toll on Allied forces, the Pentagon brass has no recourse but to consider unorthodox options including the untried and untested African-American pilots of the experimental Tuskegee training program. Just as the young Tuskegee men are on the brink of being shut down and shipped back home, these intrepid young airmen take to the skies to fight for their country and the fate of the free world.

A date which will live in infamy

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawai'i, on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941.

All eight U.S. Navy battleships were damaged, 188 U.S. aircraft were destroyed; 2,402 Americans were killed and 1,282 wounded.

The attack came as a profound shock to the American people and led directly to the American entry into World War II in both Europe and the Pacific. The United States declared war on Japan on Dec.8, and Germany and Italy to declared war on the U.S. on Dec. 11, which was reciprocated by the U.S. the same day.

The lack of any formal warning led President Franklin D. Roosevelt to proclaim Dec. 7, 1941, "a date which will live in infamy."

They accepted the challenge

I was reading about the Tuskegee Airmen gathering this week in Washington, D.C., and got to thinking of Bessie Coleman.

She was the first female African American pilot and the first African American to get an international pilots license. Sadly she died at age 34 when she fell from her plane in 1926.

Coleman served as an inspiration for a generation of African American men and women.

"Because of Bessie Coleman," wrote Lieutenant William J. Powell in Black Wings (1934), "we have overcome that which was worse than racial barriers. We have overcome the barriers within ourselves and dared to dream."

Before the Tuskegee Airmen, no African American had become a U.S. military pilot. African-American men had tried to become aerial observers during World War I, but were rejected.

(African American Eugene Bullard did serve with the Franco-American Lafayette Escadrille in WWI, but was not allowed to transfer to American military units as a pilot when the other American pilots were offered the chance.)

The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African American military aviators in the United States armed forces. The American military was racially segregated and the Tuskegee Airmen were subject to racial discrimination, both within and outside the army. Despite these adversities, they trained and flew with distinction.

In all, of the 996 pilots who trained in Tuskegee, Ala., from 1941 to 1946:

• approximately 445 were deployed overseas
• 150 Airmen lost their lives in accidents or combat
• 66 pilots killed in action or accidents
• 32 fell into captivity as prisoners of war

First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt inspected the new flight program at Tuskegee in March 1941, and took a half-hour flight with African-American chief civilian instructor C. Alfred "Chief" Anderson.

She cheerfully said after landing, "Well, you can fly all right."