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Lemont Area Historical Society
306 Lemont StreetLemont, IL 60439
(630) 257-2972www.lemonthistorical.org
November-December,
COMING EVENTS
Museum Hours10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday & Friday10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. - Saturday
1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - Sunday
Library HoursWednesday 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
By Appointment
Photo by Richard Lee
November 2- 6:30 pm Board Meeting
November 8Election Day - VOTE!
November 15 - 6:45 pmGeneral Membership Meeting
at VFWELECTION OF OFFICERS
November 15 - 7:00 pmNuclear Submarine Program
at VFW
November 24Happy Thanksgiving
December 2 - 10 am - 2pm& 3 - 9 am - 10:30 am
Cookie Drop Off
December 4 - 1:30 pmAnnual Open House
&Cookie SalePictures with Santa - 3:30
December 25Merry Christmas!
by Richard LeeDon't miss our program on Nuclear Submarines on November 15. Capt. Hyman G. Rickover, the "father of the nuclear Navy," had a background in engineering, and as WW II was drawing to a close,
Art & Soul
Lemont, ILBirthplace of the Nuclear
Powered Submarine
When: November 15 7:00 pm
Where: Lemont VFW 15780 New Ave. Suggested Donation: $10.00
USS Nautilus (SSN571)On January 21, 1954, the culmination of one of Argonne National Laboratory’s most important early research projects slid down a ramp into the icy waters off Groton, Conn.--The USS Nautiilus, the world’s first nuclear pow-
It All Started Here...
he saw the potential for a new kind of submarine, powered by a small nuclear reactor, that could stay submerged almost indefinitely, and travel undetected to any corner of the world. He approached the scientists at Argonne about designing the reactor, and the result was the USS Nautilus. Rickover visited Argonne regularly during its develop-ment.The veteran Submariners from Chicago will be returning to share their experiences aboard nuclear subs. We'll also have a retired nuclear engineer from Argonne wih a Power Point presentation. We are asking a donation of $10.00 which will be shared with the Submariners for their proposed memorial.
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Dear LAHS Members,
Thank goodness we have the Cubs to take our minds off the upcoming election for a week or so. We are all weary of the candidate theatrics, with very little focus on the important issues facing our nation. I am looking forward to the celebration when the Cubs win the World Series!!! This is history in the making!
The Art Walk in September and Fright Night Silent Movies were successful for "first time" events. It usually takes some time and several repeats for an event to catch on with the community. The good news is that there were new faces at both events.
We're looking forward to the November 15 Program on Nuclear Submarines. Richard Lee has put much time and effort into its planning and execution. Just a reminder that our General Meeting will be at 6:45 p.m. to elect candidates for 3 expiring Board seats. Since there is no contest, one ballot will be cast on behalf of the Society members. Sincere thanks to John Quinn and Joy Homerding for renewing their com-mitments on the Board. It is my hope that more of our members will be interested in getting more involved in keeping the Society a vital community organization.
Update on St. James Academy DemolitionGood News to report. A contract has been signed between the Archdiocese and Sam Alfano, a local developer, for purchase of the building. Mr. Alfano is now in a "due diligence" period to inspect the contract and the building to be sure all is in order. We will keep you posted as things progress.
We will be having the Holiday Open House and cookie sale this year on December 4 and are looking forward to the performances of St. Patrick and St. Alphonsus choirs. It is such a beautiful way to start the Christmas season.
As 2016 comes to a close, the Board and I would like to wish you all a happy and blessed Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sincerely,
Sue
President's Message. . . Lemont Then & NowPhoto Exhibit
Extended through Decemberat Lemont Center for the
ArtsOpen 10-6
Saturdays and Sundays
Holiday Cookie SaleCookies Needed!!!
It's not too soon to dig out those cookie recipes--our annual cookie sale is right around the corner. And there's no Cookie Sale without Cook-ies!Please help share the joy of the sea-son by baking a batch of your famil-iy's favorite holiday treat, and drop them off at the museum on
Friday, December 2, 10:00 am - 2:00 pm or Saturday, December 3
9:00 - 10:30 a.m.
Kick off your holidays by joining us as we welcome St. Patrick and St. Alphonsus Choirs performing be-loved Christmas music on Sunday, December 4 at 1:30 pm. Stay for an hour or spend the afternoon. Bring the family by for photos with Santa at 3:30 pm.
Fright Night 2016
Plenty of popcorn amdmovie snacks
during our showingof the Headless Horseman and
Nosferatu on October 21
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Lemont Area Historical Society
Board of DirectorsSusan Roy, President
Richard Lee, 1st Vice PresidentSusan Donahue, 2nd Vice President
Wiliam Uznanski, TreasurerRose Yates, Secretary
Board Members Barbara Bannon,
Patricia Camalliere, Carol Garibay Rick Homerding, Joy Homerding,
Doris Peterman, John Quinn, Gary Roy
Society membersare encouraged
to participate on the Committee or Subcommittee
of their choice
Browse our Gift Shop for your Holiday Gift Giving
History & Anecdotes of Lemont 6th Edition - $ 9.95Mystery at Black Partridge Woods by Patricia Camalliere $17.95
Mystery At Sag Bridge $17.95by Patricia Camalliere
NOW AVAILABLE
Celebrate a birthday, anniversary, milestone or remember an historic event
in the news!You choose the date--we do the rest.
Lemont weekly newspaper pagesdating back to the 1890s
Framed Page 11 x 14" $20.00Laminated 11 x 17" $10.00
MORE ON THE USS NAUTILUS The Nautilus was the world's first true submarine, ca-pable of operating underwater almost indefinitely. Nuclear re-actors do not need air, so they operate just as efficiently under-water as on the surface. The Nautilus could travel 50,000 miles without refueling and culd stay submerged for many days while traveling up to 20 knots. It was 323 feet (98.4 meters) long and carried a crew of 105. In August, 1958, under the direction of Commander William R. Anderson, Nautilus made the first polar transit from Point Barrow Alaska, to the Greenland Sea, traveling 1,830 miles under the polar ice cap and demonstrating the potential of nuclear-powered submarines. In 1980, President Carter presented the Medal of Free-dom to Admiral Hyman Rickover, the "father of the nuclear Navy." On that occasion the President said, "With the excep-tion of my father, no other person has had such a profound im-pact on my life."
Membership Renewal Application Make checks payable to the Lemont Area Historical Society 306 Lemont Street, Lemont, IL 60439______ Individual $20.00/year_______ Individual Life $200.00_______ Senior Citizen $15.00/year_______ Student $10.00/year_______ Family $30.00/year
Name ______________________________________________
Address ____________________________________________
Phone: __________________________________________
Thanks to all who have renewed their membersships
SOCIETY NEWS By Susan Donahue
TOUR
Recently we received a request for a quarry tour from DaVinci Waldroff School. They wanted a slightly longer excursion.
I met them at the entrance to the quarries and they were all eager to get started. They were 7th & 8th graders. Normally we have buses that bring students in but it was a smaller group so their teacher and associate drove them here.
I was at first led to believe that they were interested in nature, but later found out –Surprise! – their interest was in chemistry. They were also going to visit a working quarry so they would learn first hand the difference between the past and the present in quarrying. Thankfully we do have in our notes the composition of our limestone, etc. It was a beautiful autumn, October day so as always some walked way ahead – their teacher wasn’t surprised as they were younger – 7th graders, while their older counterparts leisurely walked closer to us.
As luck would have it there had been quite a lot of rain a few days before and at the second bridge they were treated and awed by the waterfall. As if on cue in speaking about fishing in the quarries, some people were busy concentrating on the catch of the day. We lingered at Consumers and the teacher very carefully allowed them to test the water by putting their hands in it.
The teacher took pics and I asked her what the school’s procedure was and she said after taking the photos she would need permis-sion to post them. I asked her if she wouldn’t mind asking the parents if I could post them in our own newsletter and she agreed to ask. Later I thought I had put her in an awkward position and emailed her such and thanked her again for bringing the students to Lemont as they had represented their school in a positive light. The response I got was very gratifying. The students had really enjoyed the excursion and their parents were very happy that they had handled the experience so well and yes, here are some pic-tures to post in your newsletter. I must say it also was nice to hear from the teacher that her students were quite impressed with Lemont and would talk up their experience. Music to all our ears I am sure.
If you are interested in joining our enthusiastic group of Intrepid Tour Guides,
Please contact Susan at the Museum(630) 257-2972
All Training Provided
Genealogy Corner by Barb Bannon
Researching Ancestors in WW II
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Connecting Branches
The Genealogy Committee has been made aware of the fol-lowing family names being researched:
Sandy FinnResearching Ekdahl (possibly Odell) family
If you are doing research and would like to contact these or othergenealogists, please let us know by leaving a message at
the Museum 630-257-2972 or by e-mail to [email protected]
Communications between families and their relatives during conflicts involving the United States over the years nat-urally has increased as the technology available has evolved. It's hard to realize what loved ones went through during the Civil War or WWI enduring months or longer not knowing the fate of a husband or son. Even during WWII, letters home were not the instant visual connection we are accustomed to today. The description of events was limited to ink on paper or the occasional approved photo. Today we use countless digital pictures to share even what we are about to consume at a res-taurant.
My uncle was killed in action during WWII and after reading some of the letters sent home questions arose about things that I had never heard relatives discuss. I have won-dered in what area he was at the time, what type of personal items he would have carried and in what battle if any he was in-volved in. I do know that he was killed just prior to the launch of the Battle of the Bulge. The majority of records, books, and websites I have found detail that important engagement but nothing that was related to the time prior to that battle. In 1973 a fire at the National Personnel Records Cen-ter in St. Louis destroyed records held for veterans, 80% of Army records among them, which has made research much more difficult. In my quest for records to provide significant details about his service experiences during WWII, I have al-ways looked for articles about military research and checked out each and every military research site that I could find. Just recently I discovered a series of articles by Jenni-fer Holik, a Chicago based genealogist and military historian, specializing in WWII records research. She has found that some of the easiest research and pertinent stories can be attrib-uted to the fallen. Even though they can no longer speak, their records often contain so much detail that the path of research becomes very clear.
Available through the Freedom of Information Act, there is an Individual Deceased Personnel File. This document, created by the Graves Registration Service, contains basically the same type of material for every deceased and MIA soldier across all branches of service. These files are being digitized by the US Army Human Resources Command through Ft. Knox, Kentucky.
The files generally include a Battle Casualty Report, Report of Investigation Area Search, usual identification in-formation, list of personal effects and any correspondence the soldier would have received. And if the soldier was a POW in the European Theater of War, their file will probably contain a POW card and information from captured German records or the Red Cross, many of these cards also include a photo ID of the soldier.
Anyone interested can request this file for any soldier killed in action by sending an email to: [email protected] and include as much infor-mation as you have along with your name, phone number, and email address. Keep in mind that it could take months for a reply as this department is very understaffed.
Now that these files are finally being made avail-able, I am hopeful this information will provide additional personal history that has been missing for such a long time.
In war, there are no unwounded soldiers. Let us remember them on Veteran's Day and always.
STEPPING BACKIN TIME
By Susan Donahue
In thinking of the interesting program coming up on No-vember 15 at the VFW I thought I would approach one of my cousins who served on a submarine.
JOSEPH CIMINO STS3 E4 USN
He owns “The Photographic Depot” 102 1/2 Burlington Ave, LaGrange. He was in the Navy from 1985-1990 on subs. I asked him a few questions and he kindly respond-ed.
1.What helped make your decision to join the Navy: Childhood dream?; Adventure? Making it a career?“My favorite children’s book was “What Makes it Go?What Makes it Work? What Makes it Fly? What Makes it Float?” written by Joe Kaufman. It was about everyday technology and introduced me to submarines. In fourth grade, I began drawing and designing my own subs. After that I always wanted to be on a submarine. I wanted to learn how they worked and what they did. Never wanted it as a career.”
2. Did you ask to be on a submarine? “I asked. It was my only request to my recruiter, to be on a sub.”
3.Rank – Beginning – End? “I started as a Seaman Recruit E1 (like everyone else does) and ended as a STS3(SS) E4 (sonar technician subs, third class).
4. What was your first impressions when being assigned. Some have problems adjusting? “My first impression was the smell; it smelled like my grandfather’s machine shop with a heavy oil and sweet petroleum smell – this smell was one I liked and made me feel at home. I never noticed the confinement. You became very familiar with every nook and cranny, every switch and valve; so the submarine became very comfortable, like being in your own house. Actually sleeping in the sub was more comfortable than sleeping in the barracks. I did know people who had asked to transfer, but it was rare. Sub school aims to filter out students that would have claustrophobia issues. “
5. What was your job on the sub – beginning and end? “Cranking – washing the dishes, Deck Division, Helms-man (Driving the sub), Sonar Watches, fathometer, broad-band, Ship’s Photographer.”
6. Where was your training and what theaters did you serve? “Boot Camp, Electronics School -Great Lakes; So-nar School,Groton, Con; USS JOHN MARSHALL – de-ployed to Puerto Rico, the Mediterranean, La Maddalena, Italy and Toulon, France, Cuba (for a repair). Sonar School – San Diego; USS OMAHA-Pearl Harbor, West Pacific, Japan, Hong Kong, Korea, and Alaska; USS OLYMPIA – Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and Arctic Circle.
7. Have you been in touch with those you served with and were there women aboard any of the subs? “No women on subs allowed in the time I served and I have now recon-nected with some old shipmates on Facebook. John Mar-shall does have reunions but in CA and I have never been able to attend.
“THANKS JOSEPH!”
Veteran's Honor Guard - Photo by Richard Lee
