“They’re More Than a Name on the Wall”: Harpers Ferry Area Heritage Society sponsoring pop-up museum during local Memorial Day events
Part of the museum display, but more information sought ... The photo above will be on display at the pop-up museum at the Ethel Robinson Meehan Community Center in Harpers Ferry during the town’s annual Memorial Day Observance Monday, May 27. Although some of the young men in the photo have been identified, such as the names of Tim Collins, Emmett Houlihan, Joe Sullivan and P.L. Martelle handwritten above, and the date of June 25, 1918 is printed on the photo, the location, event or purpose of the photo, in addition to other names of those pictured, are being sought by members of the Harpers Ferry Area Heritage Society. Anyone with such information can contact the Harpers Ferry Area Heritage Society through its Facebook page or the group’s website at www.harpersferryheritage.org. Submitted photo.
Roll Call of servicemen ... The Roll Call list pictured at right includes names of Harpers Ferry area men who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country in the U.S. military during noted eras or conflicts. Harpers Ferry Area Heritage Society member Regina (Robinson) Manning has been able to conduct research on all of these men and will have that research information available as part of the pop-up museum display the Heritage Society will be hosting during the Memorial Day Observance events in Harpers Ferry Monday, May 27. Submitted image.
by Brianne Grimstad
The Harpers Ferry Area Heritage Society (HFAHS) is sponsoring a pop-up museum in Harpers Ferry this Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, at the Ethel Robinson Meehan Community Center, located at 234 North 4th Street in Harpers Ferry. Entitled “They’re More Than a Name on a Wall,” the museum will honor fallen veterans from Harpers Ferry, Waterville and the surrounding area who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
Hours available for visitation will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., following the Memorial Day Program at the Veterans Memorial in Harpers Ferry. The museum will also be available during the annual American Legion Scenic Unit #722 pork chop dinner Memorial Day.
The museum will include items from the collection of the late Lois Robinson, who collected various items dealing with the history of Allamakee County, including photographs and documents. Her daughters, Regina Manning and Patty Manning, inherited their mother’s collection and would like to share these important pieces of Allamakee County’s history with everyone.
There will also be a special display honoring Regina and Patty’s brother, PFC Russell Robinson, who was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion (Ranger) 75th Infantry and was killed in action October 25, 1983 during Operation Urgent Fury on the island of Grenada. This will be the 40th Memorial Day since he made the ultimate sacrifice in service to his country.
“A lot of the items in the collection on display this year come from one family in the Harpers Ferry area, but we are hoping to get artifacts from other area families for the future,” Regina said. Regina is a recent member of the HFAHS, and understands the importance of finding, collecting and preserving the history of Harpers Ferry and the surrounding area. “We need to keep our history alive,” she said.
In sorting through the items their mother collected and working with fellow pop-up museum committee members Marita Clark, Sally Yuhouse and Ruth Ann Hawes-Cordova, Regina researched the 20 names on the memorial wall in Harpers Ferry, and also a 21st name that has not been added to the wall yet. She was able to find more information on these men and she compiled a fact sheet for each of them. Those will also be part of the pop-up museum this year.
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