Veterans Day officially began as Armistice Day in 1926 to honor veterans of the World War 1917-1918. The focal point of reverence was (and still is) the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery. That conflict was optimistically called “the war to end all wars,” but we know it as World War I.
Let’s talk about Rockingham County’s response to that war effort. Rockingham County in the World War 1917-1918 (published by Rockingham Post 27, The American Legion,1931) has names and service information for our soldiers. The county draft board reported that 789 men were drafted. In total, seven woman served as Red Cross nurses and 1,119 men served in the military. Forty-nine men were lost during the war. Causes of death show that 16 were killed in action, 2 died of battle wounds, 2 from accidents, 2 drowned at sea, and 27 died of disease [probably the Flu of 1918]. Their names were engraved on the American Legion World War Memorial at the intersection of South Main and South Liberty Streets, Harrisonburg. Two of the deceased were from Brocks Gap:
- Isaac Laban Lantz, son of Harvey Lantz of Bergton, died of pneumonia in France while serving in Company H, 163rd Infantry, and is buried in France.
- Charles W. Riggleman, son of Silas and Jennie Albright Riggleman, was killed in action while serving with Company I, 126th Infantry, 32nd Division. He is buried in Romagne, France.
Congress set Armistice Day for the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in recognition of the end of fighting on November 11, 1918. In 1954, Armistice Day became Veterans Day to recognize veterans of all wars. In Arlington Cemetery, unidentified remains from more recent wars were placed in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, symbolic of all Americans who gave their lives in all wars. An Army honor guard, the 3rd U.S. Infantry (The Old Guard), keeps day and night vigil. My father’s first cousin and World War II veteran, Hobert W. Turner Jr., was a member of the honor guard and was proud of his service at the tomb.
During World War II, many Rockingham County men and women served. Many enlisted, some right out of high school. Others like Gifford Turner 1923-2012 were drafted. In 1989, Gifford wrote about his experiences for a family booklet. “World War II really changed my life…I got my notice from my ‘Uncle Sam’ saying ‘GREETINGS’ which meant we need you. So, in January of 1943 I left for the Army.”
Gifford trained at several different camps, with basic training in Fort Knox, KY where he attended gunnery school, radio school, and learned to maneuver tanks. The hardest part of basic training, he said, was not the training itself but the uncertainty of where he would be the next day. In early 1945, Gifford sailed to France to board a tank until the end of the war. The war ended in Europe May 8, 1945, when Gifford was on the German/Austrian border, and it was a few days before they knew that the war in Europe was officially over. After receiving orders to return to New York, his division was then sent to California, on their way to the Pacific where the war was continuing. Japan surrendered due to atomic bombing just before his division was to leave for the Pacific, and Gifford remained in the United States.
Several thousand Rockingham County men likely had similar experiences, and several from Brocks Gap and Plains District lost their lives, some during the D-Day invasion in 1944. Gifford wrote and eventually talked about his Army service. If you are a veteran or know a veteran, encourage him/her to record their experiences.
About 20 years ago, Shirley Miller and Lena Turner created posters with names, photographs, and units that served for Brocks Gap veterans from all wars. The posters will be displayed again at Brocks Gap Heritage Day April 26, 2025.
Gifford summarized what he learned about family support and freedom: “Words cannot express my feelings about leaving home for the first time and heading into the Army and a World War. I was the first one [of his siblings] to leave and the only one in the family to see actual combat duty during the war. There were times in Germany that I didn’t know if I would ever get back home or not. So therefore, I probably realize a little more than others do of what freedom means. Too many people take the freedom we enjoy for granted. I can say that my safe return home from the army and war was due in part from MY MOTHER’S PRAYERS. I remember getting letters from her, which I needed, while serving in Germany. That was a good TESTIMONY for me at the right time.”
