The Daily Alaska empire Newspaper, September 3, 1936, Page 12

i L ke » T dck Henry Posi No. 1 of Anchorage Has Colorful National Executive Committee, The and historical sheet of paper, the names of thirty-three men were in- scribed, eight of whom are still THE DAILY ALASKA EMPIRE, THURSDAY, SEPT. 3, 1936. and Eric Fisher Wood, Sem’efary,!the destiny of the Post during 1920.[nearly $1200 was in this fund ere'bcing held, Tom W. Haines was American Legion. On this famous' Membership increased, an Auxiliary the middle of summer. Much credit|selected as commander, but ere he Unit was organized and peace and |is given to the new Post paper start-| was installed, resigned on account harmony prevailed. Mid-year,.Com- | ed during this year, as it kept the| of departure from Anchorage. A rades Hughes and Hewes tendered | men informed of the activities injspecial election was called and their resignations as they were de-| the Post. It was the pleasure of the James J. Delaney was elected to bination brought membership again over the 100-mark. Nineteen thirty -four appeared with Sydney C. Raynor in the chair and Sharp continuing as adjutant. the office of 2nd vice-commander off¥} the department tucked under Com: mander Raynor's arm. There wer more than 140 members at the clo of the year, another record, and H; into the ha; H istory Since Start, 1919;members and active in the Post,iparting for the states. A special elec-| Post to welcome President Harding| | | BY MAURICE L. SHARP, | HISTORIAN | In the spring and early summer | of 1919, after the ¢lose of the World | War, Anchorage seemed to be af mecca for returning soldiers seek-f ing employment and new fields to| conguer. Many of these men in| 1917-18 had lain down the imple- ments of their craft and departed from their labors on the Alaska Railroad to take the musket in de- fense of freedom. Also, many new- comers, hearing of this new coun- try, came to make a new home or get employment which was denied them in their former localities. MAURICE 1. SHARP Maurice L. Slarp, 'Historian namely: R. H. Romig, J. J. Delaney, tion was held to select men to fill | to Anchorage, and a special guard| John M. Cook, John Sultan, Archie|Oldfin was the choice for Comman- | Chief Executive, for which a letter |P. McLane and Malcolm J. Mac-lder. with D. W. Stoddard as his ad- | of commendation was later received. Donald, Comrades Delaney {MacDonald being past commanders.|100 members on the books, | the outside resigned after a very in- the commandership for the year of | 1928, to be assisted by Adjutant K. C. C. Tousley, Domicile Turcotte,[the unexpired term, and Ed. C.|of Legionnaires served our Nation'sJ. Ackley. Much work lay ahead of | the post. The Boy Scouts, remodel-‘ ing the Hall, the usual holiday cele»‘ andjutant. The year ended with nenrly‘ Adjutant Mathewson, departing for|brations, and another year of Le-‘ gion activity scrived into the pages| of Jack Henry FPist No. 1, An- chorage, enlisted in San Fran- cisco in Novemler, 1917. He served overseas irom February, 1918, to February, 1919. He was staff Sergeant and Master En- gineer, Company D, First Regiment, formerly 30th Engin- eers, gas and flaine, suicide bri- gade. Sharp saw service at Belleau Wood, Torcy, Epau, Bezu, Fim- | quarters, in their tiew headquarters sette, Fimes, Second battle of |at Indianapolis, announcing the the Marne, St. Mihiel Drive, ‘nppointmem of J. L. Hughes as Early Days During these early days of for- | Department being virtually a part \membersmp. Just before the close of 1919 word was received from' National Head-| | dustrious period of incumbency and | of history. Just ten years after thei 1921 Electi i signing of the Armistice and we had The, election held January "14,|the Post elected Art E. House to mation, meetings were held in vari-|1921, ananimously chose D. W. Stod- | Serve out the unexpired term, which|a home of our own. The new year |ous halls and club rooms, with the{dard as Commander with Robert De did with credit. On the 15th of |awoke with Ira S. Bailey, past com- H. Romig as Adjutant. A mighty | November, the Post elected A. E.| mander of Seward Post No. 5, pre- |of the Post. Memberships increased {good showing was made by the Post House to the commander’s station|siding with Maurice L. Sharp as his s |and the first year saw much activi-|this year in its local activities, yet @nd gave him J. A. Marion, a former | adjutant. Many things of interest ty in community service by the Post|the lack of a Post home caused no| ‘Frincess Pat” veteran, as his ad-|occurred during the year—it was decided to raise the necessary funds to pay off the mortgage on the home. This was done by subscription donations, giving the post $500 to meet the debt. The Department Convention being held at Juneau, end of confusion until the HElks Jutant. As we had to vacate the old Lodge built a new home and rented | Elks Home, meetings were again the old building o the Post. Here being held in the Frisco or the Royal /it was on the 25th of November of Cafe. The need for a set of post that year that Harry I. Staser was | colors induced the purchase and elected the fourth commander of|Made @ decided pride spring up Verdun, all three phases of the Department Commander and C. L.!the Post and Willlam A. English as among the members. Independence|the post elected Dept. 1st Vice- More aid to the veterans increased | G- Savage stepped the duties of the service officer, and { ness as commander and Adjt. Shargied with the convention held at Ketchi- | remained, and the drive started. kan, Raynor, Sharp and Sultan rep- | drum and bugle corps was organ resented Post No. 1, returning with | (Continued on Page Five) We Salute Alaska Legionnaires The news of a national organiza- tion of exsservice men being formed | brought a ready response among the | men in Anchorage and, at the call of Jack Sutherland, Walter Blan-| ton, Lyle W. Larson, Elwyn Swet-| man, J. L. Hughes and several ===< others, an informal meeting Was post then made application for a Argonne-Meuse cffensive, Mala- court, Avacourt, Montfacon, Cierges, Bantheville, Nouart, Fleville, and at Beaumont when the Armistice was signed. \Hewes as Department Adjutant for |the Department of Alaska, with | headquarters at Anchorage. This | prominence, hewever, did no tlast long, for at the national caucus |held at Indianapolis in the early | part of 1920, unbeknownst to the |local men, a veteran named G. A. Day Celebration was taken over;Ccmmander M. L. Sharp to repre- | by the Post and a most successful| sent the post, with instructions to three days of activity brought more|seek the 1930 convention. It was a praise to the post. During his tenure, successful trip, for not only was the | of office, Commander House pro-|convention promised the post but cured permission to use the Federal| gne first Department P Banization, the smoke cleared away, g:,’.’,limfs v;hi?e;?;goc:]:gfdilz g:z Trom, e e | leaving the Post clear. 5 = | der Post was elected, thus making | summer had passed, Ajt. Marion Adjutant Sharp, twelfth Depart- adjutant. | Formation of a political club at this time of ex-service men caused some dire criticism against the Post, but as it was organized outside -the | meetings, and not a part of the or- Pressure Creosoted DOUGLAS FIR held about the first of June in the Robarts’ Hall. More than thirty veterans attended and after some discussion elected J. L. Hughes as| chairman and C. L. Hewes as sec- charter in the name of “Jack Henry Getchell, of Juneau, was made De- Post No. 1,” the name being unani- | partment Commander and head- mously adopted upon the recom- quarters established at Juneau. mendation of Lyle W. Larson, who | Chaos existed for a short time, hav- h!l)(fp::"";(“:".l "c(umegl"o" be“;]g tendered his resignation to depart| ment Commander. At the Armistice, e ctonitan thab year N for the outside and L. B. Horton|pay banquet, the post presented the| Post petitioned for the next one to ¢ i ings. o) pr B4 Lol at ‘Anchorefes seatst s, filled the chair two meetings, then|pyilding trustees the check for the| informed those present that John ing apparently two Departments in retary in this temporary organiza-|.jack” K. Henry, a former Anchor- tion. Information regarding the|age hoy, was killed in action in the national organization and affiliation | gojs de Cierges, France on Septem- therewith was requested by mail per 29, 1918, serving as a machine and upon receipt of such data lhe?gunner in the 362d Infantry of the first plans of Post organization was| g1st Division, and was the only enacted. As it was necessary to|gpown local man killed on the bat- have a department headquarters } tle fields of France. The charter was Alaska, ‘and all through the blun- | dering action of the National Execu- tive Committee, or whoever was di- rectly responsible. However, this did not dampen the ardor of the slighted officers, and as the Post was nearest and dearest their hearts, their every effort trebled in departed to Sitka, where he attend- palance on the mortgage and said ed the Department Convention in|ote was burned with a Jjoyous shout | ¢ 1924. During his absence and after | from 1] present. With a membershi Division, Commander Staser tender-' goclining the office, Tom W. Haines of 88, wpD McKipney was inducfi‘ ed his resignation in compliance e was elected U portant sta- | St | with the National By-Laws. He Was (o0 ed to this important sta-|aq into the station of Commander! succeeded in office by Malcolm J. ; s i for the Conveulipn year z?nd AQJ\x- MacDonald. Tt was during the later Loudermilck Commander }!u?lt Sharp retained in his station part of the year that the Post main- °21Uary 14 Robert C. Loudermilck Aftc* appointment of committees, tained some railroad outfit cars! VS inducted into office as com-'Commander McKinney asked all to granted. Entering the campaign for ‘Territorial Representative of this Cheaper in final cost. Inexpensive to install. Most durable per dollar ex- pended. and officers, I. H. Fleischman was elected Territorial Chairman and Henry C. Dohrman, Territorial Sec- retary, with department headquar- | ters located in Anchorage. The new e PASSENGER AND FREIGHT SERVICE TO SOUTHEASTERN ALASKA Northland Transportation Company PIER 5, SEATTLE, WASH. received, being issued by the nation- behalf of this union. al headquarters at their temporary | At the election held by the Post offices in New York over the signa- shortly after the first of February, tures of Henry D. Lindsley, Chair-|the officers beforementioned were man, National Executive Committee unanimously _E}ected to again rul€ Convention Greetings All Ships Equipped with C o1d Storage Facilities for Movement of Frozen Fish e the = ., mander for the year of 1925 and ;?"h:ruv:o:k_tnmwfl:gd:él;z:;v"c:b?t‘: Adjutant Haines re-elected. Mem- favor of the continuance of De- bership teams were organized and partment Headquarters at Juneau 50°d drive for members was in and this information was conveyed| PrO8ress: The Post sent Ed C. Old- to the proper incumbent. The talk ' 35 delegate to the convention of having a home for the Post|°f the Department being held in caused a committee to be appointed, | el evicned with,mueh consisting of D. W. Stoddard, Rn]ph‘s‘mhusmsm. especially in regard to Vogt, Lyle W. Larson and M. J. Mac-| (N¢ Youth of the nation. A commit- Donald to investigate and report.| ¢ Of Lieut. Pence and Oldfin was Another year drew its shades and| PPOinted to investigate the needs 1523 found past Commander D. w.| [°F @ Scout Troop under the aus Stoddard again in the chair, hay-| P1¢S Of the Post and ere the year ing W. R. Mathewson as adjutant,|'°/¢d around we had acquired a Membership began in earnest, the Lc° Meeting place in the Sultan convention to be held in April, com- | Building, through the courtesy of mittees to be appointed and funds | the owner, Comrade John Sultan. to be raised, kept the meetings full| In December, 1925, 1st Vice- Com- of interest. During this period many | mander Maurice L. Sharp was elect- new members were taken in, includ- | €d to the station of post comman- ing Arthur E. House and Maurice | d€r, With Adjutant Haines re-elect- L. Sharp, who did much to raise!€d: Another big year was confront- funds and keep the public informed D8 the post. Receiving new Rituals that the Legion was doing things, [ToM the national organization the by the presentation of theatricals,|POSt's business was now conducted The quest for a new home was| 210ng established lines with marked started in earnest by the special SUCCes. A piano was procured, a committee, a lot being purchased, BoY Scout Troop formed and op- followed by the formation of a!C€rated under the leadership of E. building association. The Ladies| C- Oldfin, and an active part of Auxiliary presented the Post with | the po $500 toward the in the entertainment fea- ures of the First Annual Western Alaska Fair helped to swell the new home, and fnmko every effort to put over a big membership drive and to put over| | the biggest convention ever held in |the Department. There never| seemed to be a dull moment at any ; of the meetings, committees making reports and action taken here and there, until at last the days of the big affair arrived. What grand wea- ther greeted the large delegation of visitors is history, and for tiie next| | five days the City of Anchorage | gave the conventionnaires a rol-| king good time. Every post but| | Nome had delegates present, the | first time in the history of the De-| | partment that so many attended.! The local boys did what they could to make the stay a success and the committees handling the affair de- serve the highest praise. As the year closed, 135 members were entered on the roster, the largest in the post’s history. | Sherman Regime After the convention, routine | business again occupied our atten- | tion and as 1931 came into being, | Ralph J. Grover was elected and | installed post commander with Miss | Florence Kolb, our only active lady | member, in the office of Adjutant. | Times changed; many members de- S —— | Builing Fund. More talk, plans| P*¥{ed fOF the Outside, but still the i‘and propositions on the Legion home rounded out the year, and on | December 15, retiring Commander | Sharp turned the gavel over to Rev. {John E. Youel, with Kenneth J. | Ackley as post adjutant. This was ithp first joint installation ceremon- ies ever conducted by the post and auxiliary. The WHITE SPOT IS YOUR SPOT | Working Organization Nearly ten years after the Declar- | ation of the War we find a working organization, partaking i civic enterprises, composed of men | who did their bit in the Great War for the preservation of Democracy | against Autocracy. Several of the members thought the post should erect a log cabin ;in the bowl, a charming spot near the center of the city, but the more sagacious thought it unwise to per- haps encumber the post with a | heavy indebtedness. A joint meet- ing between the Auxiliary Unit and Post definitely postponed such ac- tion and later, an opportunity was presented to purchase a property with suitable buildings, after alter- ations, for the two bodies. This, roperty was purchased by the Unit, and with funds from both organiza- tions the present home was com- pleted. Here the post began hold- ing meetings about the 1st of Sep- Sember, and-the year closed with a whopping big Armistice Day ban- quet held in our new home. Election Legionnaires ALL STANDARD ED SWEUM [ JUNEAU EMPIRE THEATRES . ... OPERATING Capitol Coliseum Theatre Theatre JUNEAU—ALASKA Extend Greetings to : AMERICAN LEGION Department of Alaska —"The Finest Attractions Always”— in most| post had 100 members ere William M. Sherman was installed as com- | mander and Arthur H. Marsh as adjutant. Interest in school essay: and awards intensified civic duties; of the post. Next came Werner Ohls, | one of the hardest working member- | ship team men, and a fine Legion-! naire and again Sharp was installed as post adjutant, .and this com-’ Ideal for railroad ties, bridges, docks, bulkhead construction and scows. Practicadly immune from at- tacks by termites, marine borers, or decay. The material of ' ECONOMIC PERMANENCE.' WEST COAST WOOD PRESERVING COMPANY 1118 Fourth Avenue at Seneca Street SEATTLE WASHINGTON Plants: West Seattle and Eagle Harbor A BEERS 0-0-0 ELMER!!! TERMINAL DINNERS—DANCING—LUNCHEONS GOOD TIME IS TIME