Breaking News
Community News

Parkersburg, Marietta remember attack on Pearl Harbor with wreath ceremonies

By KRISTEN HAINKEL and DOUGLAS HUXLEY 3 min read

PARKERSBURG -- Veterans and community members in Parkersburg and Marietta recalled the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor Thursday with solemn ceremonies that culminated in wreaths being released into the Ohio and Muskingum rivers.

Thursday was the 82nd anniversary of the Japanese attack on the U.S. base in Hawaii, where 2,403 Americans died.

"(We've) got to teach history and remember all those who have served," said April Binkney, secretary and treasurer of the Veterans Museum of the Mid-Ohio Valley, during a ceremony Thursday afternoon at Point Park in Parkersburg.

Phillip Johnston, commandant of the Wood County Marine Corps League Detachment 1087, said it was important for the younger generation to learn about that history.

"I was born in 1942 during World War II," Johnston said. "The young people today, I don't think, are getting those kinds of lessons."

Binkney told those in attendance how the attacks started at 7:55 a.m. and lasted one hour and 15 minutes. She then shared some information she recently heard on the radio about the USS Arizona, which sank in the attacks and is commemorated by a concrete memorial that spans the wreckage.

"They said that the USS Arizona is still leaking oil," Binkney said. "I believe she will cry until all her men are returned on that ship. It's very special that we celebrate this every year."

An honor guard consisting of local veterans gave a 21-gun salute and played "Taps" before representatives of the different military branches tossed wreaths into the river.

"They represent each branch of service and each service organization in the town," Johnston said.

Binkney said the wreath was chosen because it is a complete circle with no beginning or end.

"We all reach out into the circle of our community to help represent each other," she said. "So, that circle is symbolic of who we are as organizations and the different branches that we represent."

At the ceremony at Front and Putnam streets in Marietta, AMVETS Post 1788 Public Relations Officer Bruce Edward Haas was the keynote speaker.

"Eighteen days before Christmas, more than 2,400 Americans were killed, more than 1,200 wounded. Many of them were never to be found again. Thousands of families were devastated, and we were plunged into the Second World War," he said.

Haas said his father served in World War II in the 8th Air Force but was not at Pearl Harbor.

"He said, 'We need to make sure this never happens again on American soil because it's unimaginable,'" Haas said.

After Haas' remarks, the ceremony moved to the Putnam Bridge, where Marietta Police had momentarily blocked traffic. AMVETS Post 1788 Commander Gene Venham called upon representatives from the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, AMVETS, Marine Corps League and Military Order of the Purple Heart to release memorial wreaths into the Muskingum River.

"Next year, we're thinking about doing the whole ceremony from the bridge," Haas said. "There's still some logistics to work out."

To conclude the ceremony, an honor guard performed a 21-gun salute and a trumpet player performed "Taps."

Kristen Hainkel can be contacted at khainkel@newsandsentinel.com.

Douglass Huxley can be reached at dhuxley@newsandsentinel.com.

Starting at /week.