The group of men sat proudly at their table, their Montford Point Marines banner attached across the front. They were a quiet group, not badgering or calling out to those of us enjoying the displays at a Black History Showcase earlier this year.
They waited patiently for us to approach, unlike the United States Colored Troops (USCT) re-enactors who waylaid us as we neared. That was a hardy bunch, eager to show off their reproduction artifacts and tell the story of the 180,000 slaves and free men who fought in the Union army during the Civil War. It was a story that needed to be told, and these guys were good at it.
Just as the Marines were in the shadows of the USCT on that day, that’s where they’ve been since thousands of them signed on to join the service branch that was the last to admit African Americans.
But not any longer. The black men who fought for their country in Europe and braved segregation in the Marines during World War II received the Congressional Gold Medal in Washington today. Men up in age came to the nation’s capital in their own stride, in wheel chairs, on canes and by any other means necessary to be honored for their endurance, patience and service.
One Marine accepted the medal on behalf of the more than 400 who were on hand for the ceremony. The original will be displayed at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, VA, just south of Washington. The men received replicas in bronze.
As I read the stories of their acknowledgment, the auction-goer and history buff in me silently willed these men and their families to not only keep those medals in a safe place but all the memorabilia and artifacts from their time in the military: Photos. Service medals. Field manual. Mess kit. ID tag. Dress uniform. Baseball bat. Poster. Scrapbooks. Anything that showed their connection to Montford Point and the history of blacks in the Marines.
I have written often reminding families to keep those relics as historical treasures. I’ve been to enough auctions where I’ve seen military keepsakes tossed, lying on an auction table as if they never meant anything to anyone. I have bought photos and papers of several soldiers, but it’s not often that I see them from Marines.
Instead of throwing out the artifacts with the trash, I suggest such alternatives as donating them to a museum or public collection, selling them or keeping as much as you can.
Some of those items are sometimes worth more than we think. I was at an auction in New York earlier this year when a collection of 77 photos taken by a Tuskegee Airman nicknamed “Down Beat” sold for $16,000. A non-military lot of Pullman Porter memorabilia – including a footstool, cap, postcards and photos – went for $17,000.
I’m hoping they were bought by a public collection that will share them with us.
Memorabilia from the Montford Point Marines, I’m sure, will turn up soon, too, because they have a history right up there with the Tuskegee Airmen (who received a Congressional Medal in 2007). They all endured poor lodging, bad treatment and more, but withstood it with a resilient mind and body. African American men took up the call to join the Marines after President Roosevelt put an end to segregation in the Corps in 1942. About 20,000 of them trained in a segregated camp called Montford Point near Camp Lejeune, NC, from 1942 to 1949.
After training, most were assigned to non-combat guard duty, supporting white Marines fighting Japanese troops in Saipan, Iwo Jima and Okinawa in the Pacific. Those in the ammunition and depot units saw some combat, according to one account.
Today’s honor was one that many of the Marines couldn’t fathom happening 70 years ago, according to interviews in several news stories. Honoring them is one way of recording their history and integrating it into American history. And the artifacts help make it real.
Hi Sherry Howard,
I was thrilled to read your blog on the Montford Point Marines. My father is a Montford Marine. He entered the Marine Corp. in 1942. He served in the Pacific Theater on the Marshall Islands of Eniwetok and Kwajalein. He was a Gunnery Sargeant in charge of large munitions. He was honorably discharged in December 1945.
The Congressional celebration for these heroes was a bittersweet one for my family because my Dad passed in May of 2010 at the age of 96. He would have been so proud to be a part of this very special day. Unfortunately only living MPMs could attend the festivities in D.C. However we do intend to attend the convention this year in August in Jacksonville N.C. where there will be the official groundbreaking for the national memorial.
We do have some artifacts (knife, Bible, and compass) that my dad carried during the war. We have been approached by the national president of the MPMA regarding the placement of such artifacts in the museum.
My father was a graduate of Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona, Fla. and often told many stories about his interaction with Mrs. Bethune, her conversations with Eleanor Roosevelt and much more. But that is for another blog. Thanks again for remembering these great men.
Hi. It was my pleasure to write about them. They were some very courageous men, both inside and outside the country.
Sherry