Returning History

RETURNING HISTORY

During the January Post meeting, it was brought to the attention of the Post that Joey B. King of China Post 1 of the American Legion and AMVETS Rutherford County Post 325 had noticed the above signage located in a local restaurant in Smyrna.  He and T.K.Kast of Tennessee Post 141 of the American Legion have been doing research on the history of the signage, along with Frank Acquavia.  It is now their desire to attempt to get the signage back where it belongs, the hometown of Frank Acqavia, Dunkirk, New York.

I am going to copy information that King and Kast presented to our members that it appears they received from a Find a Grave website.

Frank J. Acquavia

BIRTH:                 28 May 1917, Dunkirk, Chautauqua County, New York, USA

DEATH:                10 May 1944 (Aged 24) Philippines

MONUMENT:     Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Manila, Philippines

PLOT:                     Tablets of the Missing – United States Army – Missing in Action

MEMORIAL ID:  56750861

Excerpt of  the article:

 

A piece of history tied to a fallen World War II Dunkirk native has been found by a museum in Maryland.  The dog tag of U.S.Army Pvt. Frank Acquavia was one of about 10 found on Corregidor Island in the Philippines by a counselor who works for a Christian organization in the Philippines.

According to Butch Maisel, founder and curator of The Center for Military History, that is part of the Boys Latin School in Maryland in Baltimore, the tags were then given to a Christian missionary from the United Stated, who then gave them to Maisel for his museum.  Maisel reached out to the OBSERVER knowing that these items need to go to the families.

Acquavia, whose body was never recovered, died May 10, 1942, as a prisoner of Japan.  He had been serving with the 59th Coast Artillery Regiment, according to the book “No One Forgets”, which was written by George Burns III and Richard Titus.  Acquavia lived at 53 E. Second St., and was the Son of Mr. and Mrs. Rocco Acquavia.

He was captured in Corregidor during the opening days of the war in the Pacific, “The Japenese herded some Americans down to a seaplane landing area, ” the book noted.  “Frank went to retrieve or find food that was hidden at their battery.  A Japanese guard spotted him and opened fire with a machine gun killing him instantly.  This was witnessed by Jim Rossoto of Fredonia.”

Former American Legion Post 1344 in Dunkirk on Lake Shore Drive West was named after him.

End of Excerpt

Legion Members King and Kost found further information that there had been two American Legion Posts in Dunkirk, New York, with the other one being in existence longer that Post 1344 (Most likely the reason Post 1344 disbanded and the other post exists today.  It is their opinion that some effort be made to have the signage acquired and returned to the existing post in Acquavia’s home town, where it properly belongs.  A vote was taken and approved for King and Kost to pursue this further, representing Post 141, a very Nobel endeavor, in my opinion.

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